When to Fertilize Roses

Fertilizer for rose bushes contains three primary ingredients: nitrogen to stimulate green growth, phosphorus to increase flower production and root growth, and potassium to help the plants resist disease and cold. If you have properly prepared soil for your newly planted rose bush, it is best to wait until after the first flush of roses before fertilizing. Established rose bushes require fertilizing in the spring, before the first buds appear.

Things You'll Need

• Chemical fertilizer

Instructions

1. Visit your local nursery or gardening store to purchase a chemical fertilizer that is 5 percent nitrogen, 10 percent phosphorus and 5 percent potassium. This may be called 5-10-5. Prepare to fertilize your mature rose bushes before they begin to bud in the spring. If you are planting new rose bushes, wait until after their first buds appear before fertilizing.

2. Scratch a half cup of the fertilizer (per plant) into the soil. If the soil area is heavily mulched, sprinkle the fertilizer evenly over the top of the mulch and water thoroughly. Do this for your established rose bushes in the spring before they bud. Scratching is scraping and breaking up the top soil with a small rake or trowel, thus mixing the soil and fertilizer without disrupting the roots.

3. Scratch a quarter cup of the fertilizer (per plant) into the soil around new and established rose bushes after the first wave of roses has passed. If the soil area is heavily mulched, sprinkle the fertilizer evenly over the top of the mulch and water thoroughly.

4. Scratch a quarter cup of the fertilizer (per plant) into the soil around new and established rose bushes in midsummer. If the soil area is heavily mulched, sprinkle the fertilizer evenly over the top of the mulch and water thoroughly.