Why I Oughta...

Yesterday, I posted some photos of our Disneyland Roses in bloom and mentioned that one of the Floribunda roses had gotten very big.  Below is a photo showing the largest one.  It is newly planted earlier this year.  And, the tallest sections are at least four-feet tall.  And the whole thing is wider than four-feet wide across the center.  I've had knee-high Disneyland Roses in the past and the product listing from Jackson and Perkins describes these as 3-feet-tall plants.  So, either they're happy and well-fed.  Or, there's something else going on like the root-stock pushing the plant taller.   This size poses a over-wintering challenge.  I can't do what I've done previously and top this with leaf litter.  It is too big.  This one may just have to survive winter on its own.

The newly planted (this season) Disneyland Roses are really popping off these days, too.  Blooms on top of blooms.  I was pretty good about feeding these monthly and treating them with multiple ways for pests and fungus:  systemic as well as topical spraying.  I also was deliberate in deadheading them and removing the rose nips.  The result are the largest, most productive Disneyland Roses I've ever grown.  They also have the longest stems of any Floribunda Rose that I've ever grown.   Below are a few shots showing the current state of these roses.  I'm going to stop deadheading them and hope that there won't be much new growth being put on in the final weeks before frost.

A few days ago, I applied my final (for this season) granular fertilizer application to all of the dahlias around the front/back/side yards as well as the five Disneyland Roses on the side of the house.  I (once again) used a three-in-one systemic granular that includes fertilizer, insecticide and fungicide from BioAdvanced.  I started using this stuff in May this season, so this marks the fifth application on the plants in 2025.   Here, below, is a peek at the base of one of the Dahlia tubers in the sideyard.  I use the cap from the bottle as the measuring device and dropped the granules at the base of each one.  Last year, I was getting blooms all the way up to the first frost in Mid-October, so this feeding will go for the next 5-or-so weeks.

So far, so good with the Disneyland Roses.  In an attempt to 'do better' than last year with the Floribunda roses, I've been paying a little closer attention to them - with watering, feeding and treating them - proactively. That started a month ago with the first application of a systemic all-in-one "rose care" granular that includes fertilizer, pesticide and fungicide .  It also means spraying them with fungicide and Neem Oil every-few-weeks.  And, being deliberate to water the crowns, not the foliage. With the calendar turning to June, it was time to apply the second monthly feeding.  I put down the same all-in-one granular at the crowns of each of the five Disneyland Roses.  See below for that feeding:  These Disneyland Roses produce blooms in successive 'flushes' - with blooms appearing about a month-or-so apart from each other.  The first flush of blooms is arriving this past week and we're seeing some blooms on all five plants (the three old ones...

Last year, we had trouble with our Disneyland Roses. Between pests (Sawfly Larvae), diseases (Black Spot and Rust, I think) and drought, the blooms were few and far between. I fed them and treated the foliage with Neem oil, but I'm not sure I was making an impact.  They say that roses are "heavy eaters", so I've been trying to feed them monthly during their growing season the past few years, but I switched over to an "all-in-one" granular product last year.  These "all-in-one" claim to feature three different solutions:  fertilizer, pest control and disease control.    Below is canister of the granular that I recently applied from BioAdvanced named Rose & Flower Care.  The instructions say to use a half-capful of the granular around each rose.  I sprinkled it around the crowns of all five Disneyland roses then used a small rake to work it into the mulch.   Last year, we were showing the first flush of Roses by the end of May .  I'm p...

A couple days ago, I showed how we planted two new, bareroot Disneyland Roses (Floribunda roses) in the sideyard along-side the three existing Disneyland Roses .  In that post, I talked about how I was hopeful that the three legacy roses would come back this year - despite a TOUGH 2024.  They had leaf-drop, pests (sawfly larvae) and disease.  So, I wasn't sure if they were going to make it. But, Spring is the most hopeful time in the gardening calendar.  And, that's because there are signs of rebirth all around us.  These Disneyland Roses are the latest case.  All three legacy roses are showing signs of life with red-ish tips and green growth.    Below are some photos showing the three legacy roses and their new, seasonal growth: And more good news is that the two recently-planted bareroot Disneyland Roses are *also* showing new, seasonal growth with red buds emerging on the green canes.  See below for a top-down view of both of these new p...

My Disneyland Roses have struggled all season.  Not a lot of blooms.  Yet...tons of LOST foliage.  They look bare.  The past week-or-so, I've tried to baby them with water.  And, I just applied the last feeding of the year - with this systemic granular.    I'm hoping that they'll have a strong Fall showing and get fat-and-happy with the weather cooling off a bit now that August is in the rearview mirror.  I'll do my part - and water them more regularly, but, I don't see a way that they get back to what they were last year - at this time - with BIG bunches of blooms and a happy Floribunda bush .  

What a difference two weeks make.  Earlier this month, I posted about our Disneyland Roses and described them as 'struggling '.  This is the second year where they 'struggled' - including an infestation of Sawfly Larvae.  The three bareroot ones didn't come back this season and I suspect it was the result of the pests.  As I've done in previous years, I've begun to feed the three remaining Floribunda roses with a combo fert + systemic insecticide on the first of the month (May, June).   But, that wasn't enough.  The leaves of the roses were lace-like and the plant seemed to be in decline. That's when I took drastic measures and first sprayed Neem Oil on them every few days follwing by  bombing all three of them with Eight insecticide dust .  The remaining foliage had a ghost-like quality with the white dust clinging to the leaves and stems.  For days and (now) weeks.     These Disneyland roses grow in 'flushes'.  At ...

This is the second granular feeding of the season for our Disneyland Roses that I've been trying to put down right around the first of the month - so this one is a day early.  See below for a few photos - showing the fertilizer application as well as the state of the three remaining rose bushes with blooms.  The one closest to the fence is having some trouble, so I've been spraying them every week with a Neem Oil brew to help kill whatever pests and/or fungus that is taking over. 

I'm posting this on May 9th, but these photos date back to May 1st - when I applied the first (monthly) treatment of rose fertilizer and systemic insect treatment.  I have just three Disneyland Roses left after the three that were planted last year failed to survive the Winter.  Roses are 'heavy eaters', so I try to feed them once a month.  I figure...there's no better day than the first of the month to feed them, right?   Below are a couple of photos - first showing the granules that I tossed around the base of the roses.  And then, below, a photo of the container showing the 2-in-1 product:

Earlier this growing season, I discovered that most of our Disneyland Roses were having their foliage destroyed by someone or something.  The leaves were spotted and some of them were eaten-up and looked like lace.  Here's a post from June 2023 that shows one of those eaten-up leaves .   I applied a granular fertilizer all season - starting in early Spring - and I wasn't sure if the foliage damage was a result of the granules clinging to wet leaves, but it seemed far-fetched.   The foliage-eating continued all season, but by July, I decided to take some action and switched from just straight Rose Fertilizer to a 2-in-1 feed and care product from BioAdvance .  My hunch was that SOMETHING was eating the leaves and the 2-in-1 is a 'systemic' product. That means it isn't something that takes root immediately and eliminates the pests.  Rather, it feeds the roses and - via the roots - takes up the insecticide and carries it to all the plant material....

Yesterday, I shared a few photos of the Disneyland Floribunda Rose in its native environment : a flower bed in New Orleans Square in Disneyland Park.  Today, I'm taking a look at the three (more) mature Disneyland Roses that we have planted in full sun on the southside of our house.  They, too are in bloom; having just started their third flush of pink/salmon/orange flowers on medium-length stems. Below are a few photos showing these floribunda roses: This is the third 'flush' of blooms for the season. Early June - First Blooms Early August - Second Blooms Late August/Early September - Third Blooms (this post) In 2022 (last season), I was seeing blooms last all the way into early November.   It seems that this third flush of blooms is a bit earlier than 2022 ( last year, I saw them all the way at the end of September ), so perhaps that fourth bloom will be pulled a bit forward, too.  While I was out there admiring the Disneyland Roses, I also sprinkled them with ros...

Roses are - they say - heavy feeders.  So, I've been applying a heavy-hand of granular rose food every month this season; starting in April.   This month - July - I sprinkled a combo fertilizer and systemic pest control that you can see in the bottom photo.  Posting this to mark down this as a 'seasonal task'; per my 2023 to-do list.   Photos below show the three new, bareroot roses with fertilizer at their feet. These three don't seem to have been infected with the same pest as the ones on the side, but I figure I can inoculate them a bit with this systemic treatment. 

I've been trying to feed our Disneyland Roses every month over the past few growing seasons.  In mid-April, I applied the first granular fertilizer and this past weekend, I laid down the second feeding using this Vigoro Rose Food granules.  I fed both the existing Disneyland Roses (3 of them) on the side of the house and a very light sprinkle around the three newly planted bareroot ones in the front porch bed . The three more-mature Disneyland Roses are leaf'ing out and growing vigorously this Spring - see below for a look at the one closest to the front of the house:

They say that roses are 'heavy eaters'.  That means that - if you have them in your garden - you should feed them every 30 days or so.  And that's what I've attempted to do over the past few growing seasons.  #16 on my 2023 to-do list is to continue with the seasonal projects - including feeding.   I'm trying to get to know these floribunda roses a bit more this season; starting with a hard prune a few weeks back .  I had a little bit of leftover Rose Food from last year, so I split the bag three-ways and sprinkled the granules at the base of the three roses on the side of the house.   If you look closely at the photo below, you can also see (in addition to the rose fertilizer granules) some signs of new, green(ish-red) growth from the canes of the floribunda rose. Here, below, is the brand (Vigoro) that I had on hand.   If the garden diary is any guide, it seems that I have seen a flush of blooms about 30 days after feeding.  With...

This application of rose fertilizer to our three Disneyland Roses (Floribunda Roses) on the south side of our house marks the fourth seasonal application of the granular fertilizer this year.  May, June, July and now....August.  (Despite this post publishing in September, I put down this rose food in late August).    The full archive of rose fertilizer posts are here .  Below, you can see how I spread this fertlizer around the base of the rose: And, here's a look at the bag of Vigoro food that I've been using all season.  I didn't use ALL of this bag this year, but came pretty close.   The timing of the blooms of these seem to follow the application of the food.  Right now (late August), these have just finished a bloom-cycle and should be putting on the final set of buds for a September flower show soon.  

I just put down some of this Vigoro granular Rose Food around the base of all three of our Floribunda Roses - Disneyland Roses - that are on the south side of our house in the sideyard.  The package that I'm using can be seen in the photo below: This is the third application of this same Rose Food this season. On May 24th, I gave them their initial application of Rose fertilizer . On June 25th, I gave them their second dose of Rose fertilizer .  I also feed a few other things with iron. #10 on my 2022 to-do list was to continue with some seasonal projects - like feeding roses.  I feel pretty good about the feeding part of that item. 

Tracking for the [ garden diary ] as well as the 2022 to-do list a couple of applications in the garden.  First up is iron. Fast-acting iron. Chelated Iron . I applied this to the rhododendrons by the back stoop and the Little Henry Sweetspire out front.  Below is a photo of one of the rhododendrons where I peeled back the mulch and sprinkled the pelletized iron.  I applied this iron to both. This is the product that I've used the past two seasons . (below)  Next up are the Disneyland Roses.  This is the second application of rose food to my three Floribunda roses.  This is the second application of the season.  The first was in mid-May .  In the photo below, you have to look closely, but if you do, you'll see the granular fertilizer.