Rose (Rosa indica L.)
Introduction
Roses are symbol of beauty, fragrance and are used to convey the message of love. In India roses are grown for cut flowers, making essential oil, rose water and gulkand. Dry petals of roses are also used for making incense sticks. Roses are native of Himalayas regions, Asia, China, Japan, Europe and North America. There are about 150 species but very few species have played a major role in evolving modern roses. These species are Rosa gallica, R. damascena,
Variery
Traditionally, roses were notoriously challenging to grow. However, roses have changed. There are now many modern easy-to-grow types of roses available. Here are some of our favorites:
- Rugosas, with their showy, bright-pink, white, or lavender 5-petal blooms, are great for hedges and wherever a barrier is needed in an exposed or difficult site. They are disease-resistant and cold hardy to Zone 3. Many are fragrant and produce colorful hips. ‘Jens Munk’ blooms through most of the summer.
- Pink roses such as ‘Carefree Wonder’ are well-rounded shrub roses cold hardy to Zone 5. They grow about 3 feet tall and require only a little shaping in early spring.
- Yellow roses such as ‘Harrison’s Yellow’ blooms early, brightly, and sweetly, and will survive Zone 4 winters.
- Hybrid musk roses grow to 5 to 6 feet tall. This shrub rose has attractive foliage and clusters of many small to medium-size flowers. ‘Buff Beauty’ has clusters of fragrant apricot-yellow blooms.
- Flower Carpet roses are excellent for ground cover. Once established, they can provide up to 2,000 flowers from spring till fall. They’re extremely low maintenance, drought tolerant, and have exceptional disease resistance.
1. Climate: Moderately cool climate with bright sunshine and free ventilation is very good for rose cultivation in India. Most rose cultivars grow best at a temperature range of 15-270C producing good quality and quantity of flowers.
2. Soil and its Preparation: The ideal soil for rose flowers should be medium loam having sufficient organic matter, proper drainage and pH of 6.0 to 7.0. The soil should be thoroughly dug or ploughed 20-30 cm deep and kept open to sun for at least 15 days.
For rose plant cultivation, after removing the weeds, the field should be reploughed and leveled. The land with high water table is not suitable for rose cultivation.
3. Planting: Before rose planting, prepare a small pit (30×30 cm) to accommodate the earth ball of a new plant. Though the planting of roses on plains can be done from August to March but the best time is September-October.
In the hills the best planting time is February-March.
4. Spacing: Different spacing is recommended for cultivation different types of rose used for different purpose.
Hybrid Tea and Floribunda roses for beautification in the gardens are planted at a distance of 75 cm while, Polyantha and Miniature roses require about 45 cm spacing and climbers and standards planted about 2 meters apart.
A closer spacing of 40×20 cm is normally followed for plantations in green house.
5. Propagation: Rose flowers are commercially propagated by ‘T’ or shield budding on the rootstock. But rootstocks and miniature roses are propagated by cuttings. The best time of budding is from December to February.
Manure and fertilizer
- Diligently water your roses. Soak the entire root zone at least twice a week in dry summer weather. Avoid frequent shallow sprinklings, which won’t reach the deeper roots and may encourage fungus. In the fall reduce the amount of water, but do not allow roses to completely dry out.
- Roses love water—but don’t drown them. That is, they don’t like to sit in water, and they’ll die if the soil is too wet in winter. The ideal soil is rich and loose, with good drainage. One of the worst mistakes you can make is to not provide adequate drainage.
- Use mulch. To help conserve water, reduce stress, and encourage healthy growth, apply a 2- to 4-inch layer of chopped and shredded leaves, grass clippings, or shredded bark around the base of your roses. Allow about 1 inch of space between the mulch and the base stem of the plant.
- Roses can be cut back and moved in either spring or fall, but not in midsummer, as they might suffer and die in the heat. Large rose canes can be cut back by as much as two thirds, and smaller ones to within 6 to 12 inches of the ground.
