“It’s the time you spend on your rose that makes it so important… You become responsible forever for what you’ve tamed. You’re responsible for your rose.” – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry is, without a doubt, one of my favorite books. I read it and reflect on it often. We become responsible for what we tame. And I tame plants, especially roses. Over the years, I have cultivated more than a hundred different rose bushes in my garden, and because I adore them so much, I continue to propagate and proliferate.
In this month of love, roses are celebrated as the flower of amour. Since ancient times, roses have been the symbols of affection, passion, and admiration. To grow beautiful roses in your garden, you can buy them fully grown, reproduce from canes, or grow them as bare-root plants. All methods usually result in beautiful blooms in the first year.
Bare Necessities:
This is the season for planting all bare-root plants, specifically roses. You’ll also find bare-root strawberries, grapes, raspberries, artichokes, asparagus, daylilies, peonies, apple trees, pear trees, and many other deciduous plants, all less expensive than purchasing potted plants at the nursery.
What are bare-root plants? Specimens are dug up when they are dormant. All soil is removed by washing, and the plants are kept cool and damp. They are usually sold wrapped in burlap or plastic with sphagnum moss or sawdust surrounding the roots to keep them moist. Because there is no soil, both the grower and the gardener reap savings in cost.
The secret to successfully growing bare-root plants is to get them in the ground as soon as possible. Remove the packaging and packing materials and examine the roots. If there is any damage, trim the roots or branches, making sure that the roots have not rotted or gotten too dry.
I soak rose roots in a bucket of water overnight to hydrate. Most woody plants like grapes and peonies can soak for two hours, while perennials, berries, and asparagus need only twenty minutes of water immersion.
Mark your desired location based on the sun or shade necessities of your plant, then dig holes deep enough and wide enough to allow the roots to spread. The base of the stems must be at ground level in our milder climate and three inches below ground level in colder areas. Fill the hole with soil mixed with compost, lightly packing to eliminate air pockets. Water slowly and deeply. To hold in the moisture, cover with a good-quality mulch. Feeding, generous mulching, and deep watering help to encourage strong growth and abundant flowers.
How to Propagate Roses from Canes:
It’s also very simple to propagate your non-trademarked roses from cane cuttings. When you do your heavy pruning, first remove the weak, damaged, woody, or dead stems.
1. Cut all remaining blooms to make a final season rose bouquet before heavy pruning.
2. Look for a healthy cane and cut it at an angle below the bud. If you have long canes, they can be cut in two.
3. Strip all leaves from the cane leaving it bare.
4. Pour new potting soil into a clean container with a drainage hole.
5. Dip the newly cut cane in a rooting solution, such as Rootone or any rooting powder. Follow the directions on the label.
6. Put two or three canes into the soil in each container.
7. Place in a sunny location.
8. Water as needed, keeping the soil moist but not soggy.
9. Within two months, the canes will root and begin to leaf out.
10. Transplant each rooted cane that boasts a substantial number of leaves to the area where you want it to survive. Dig a hole big enough for the roots and add compost to the soil.
11. Mulch around the plant.
12. Water deeply and often.
How Long to Beautiful?
With both bare-root and cane-propagated roses and peonies, a few flowers normally emerge in the first season and get more beautiful and bountiful in the following two years. Asparagus needs two to three years before harvesting spears. With grapes, pears, and apples, you can expect fruit within three to five years. Strawberries grown from a runner or cane will produce fruit within sixty days and, as with other plants, be more prolific in the next year.
The best way to keep your new plants healthy is to pay attention to their needs. Feed with a well-balanced fertilizer. Excessive nitrogen is detrimental as it can make plants more susceptible to diseases and pests. When watering, avoid getting the leaves wet. Water earlier in the day to allow the leaves to dry out quickly in case they are too wet.
Roses are not just for the landscape; they are spectacular as a focal point in containers as well. Tree roses or compact miniature roses add color, fragrance, appeal, and architectural interest to any patio, porch, or balcony. The key is to choose the right type of rose for the area.
Tips for Growing Roses in a Container:
1. Choose a container that is eighteen to twenty inches in diameter and depth to support the growth.
2. Pair with companion plants with smaller blooms and cascading tendencies to complement without upstaging the rose.
3. Feed with a well-balanced liquid or granular fertilizer.
4. Water deeply and consistently.
5. Top dress with mulch and compost to offer nutrients and minerals while maintaining moisture and protecting the roots.
6. Deadhead roses as blooms fade.
7. In the winter months of January and February, heavily prune your roses to one-third of their size.
This month, remember to apply a combination of mineral oil and liquid copper fungicide as a dormant spray to roses, fruit trees, and citrus to kill overwintering insect eggs and disease spores. (Citrus is edible after washing with warm water.)
The time you spend with your roses (and all your plants) will bring you delight and pride. Roses are rooted in generations of legacy, blooming with romantic elegance throughout the year. You become responsible forever for what you tame, and you will enjoy taming your roses.
Bare and beautiful! I highly recommend reading Le Petit Prince.
May you cherish the love this February and always.
Happy Gardening. Happy Growing. Happy Valentine’s Day!
Photos on Substack: https://cynthiabrian.substack.com/p/beautiful-and-bare?
Read Press Pass: https://www.vapresspass.com/2025/02/04/gardening-in-2025/
For more gardening advice for all seasons, check out Growing with the Goddess Gardenerat https://www.CynthiaBrian.com/books. Raised in the vineyards of Napa County, Cynthia Brian is a New York Times best-selling author, actor, radio personality, speaker, media and writing coach, as well as the Founder and Executive Director of Be the Star You Are!® 501 c3, which was just honored as the 2024 Nonprofit of the Year by the Moraga Chamber of Commerce. https://www.BetheStarYouAre.org. Tune into Cynthia’s StarStyle® Radio Broadcast at https://www.StarStyleRadio.com. Her newest children’s picture book, Books in the Barnyard: Oh Deer!, from the series Stella Bella’s Barnyard Adventures is available at https://www.CynthiaBrian.com/online-store. Hire Cynthia for writing projects, garden consults, and inspirational lectures. Cynthia@GoddessGardener.comhttps://www.CynthiaBrian.com
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