How to Grow Knock Out Roses

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By stratus
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Double Knock Out - Red

The Knock Out® Rose is a new brand of roses that is very resistant to blackspot and mildew and continues to bloom and flower even in conditions that are not idea. For all of the gardeners who have spent decades fretting over roses to make sure they had optimal light, soil, pruning not to mention spraying roses for pests and blackspot and mildew - The Knock Out® Rose is liberating! The Knockout Rose will look wonderful in your rose garden.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Step 1

First, select a site that will accomodate the rose at full maturity. Currently all Knock Out® Roses are rose bushes which grow to about 4 feet tall and about 3 feet wide. As always, plant the small plants that you buy at the garden center in a way that they can grow to their full size. These grow quickly and you will not want to have to transplant before they hit their mature size. If they grow three feet wide, plant them four to five feet from stem to stem.

When planting, dig the hole larger than the pot that the rose came in, amend the soil with a good deal of organic matter. Fill the hole with water and let it drain then loosen the rose from the nursery pot, place the root ball into the hole. Adjust the height so that the trunk of the rose bush is even to the dirt level that was in the pot. It is important not to plant roses to deep or too shallow. Be sure to follow the lead of the nursery who planted it initially.
Step 2

Once planted, remember to fertilize. While the Knock Out® Rose is a prolific bloomer with a long blooming season, pick up a rose fertilizer to encourage maximum blooms. There are a number of rose fertilizers which are either water soluble which you can mix into water, or are sustained release which can be sprinkled around the base of each rose. Read the manufacturers directions on amounts and frequency.
Step 3

Pruning Knock Out® Roses is again, easier to care for than other roses. You can prune this one similar to how you would prune a shrub. First take off any dead wood. Then, step back and look at the overall shape. Do you need to cut back some stems in the middle to improve the shape. When the branches begin to get old, cut back about a quarter of the plant to encourage new growth.
Step 4

Choose a color to complement your landscape. The colors of Knock Out® Roses are :
Red:

The Knock Out® Rose (Cherry Red)
The Double Knock Out® Rose (Cherry Red, double blossoms)

Pink:

The Pink Knock Out® Rose (Pink)
The Double Pink Knock Out® Rose (Pink, double blossoms)
The Rainbow Knock Out® Rose (Coral Pink with Yellow Centers)
The Blushing Knock Out® Rose (Light Pink)

Yellow/Cream

The Sunny Knock Out® Rose (Bright Yellow that fades to Cream)