Roses will grow best if they can receive at least six hours of sun each day. They also will do best if they are in an area where there is no root competition from trees and shrubs. One other requirement is a well-drained spot. This is not usually a problem in our part of West Texas. Dig a hole one foot deep and fill it with water. If water remains in the hole twenty four hours later, then that area is not well drained.
Avoid buying packaged plants in grocery stores, discount stores, etc. There is no way of knowing whether or not those plants have been allowed to dry out sometime during the long journey from the field to your garden.
Avoid buying plants with waxed canes. The sunlight in West Texas is so intense that it will melt the wax, burn the canes, and thus kill the plant.
Almost all local retail nurseries will have good plants for sale that have been handled with great care and should grow well when planted in the garden. Look for plants that have at least three strong canes and minimal die back on the tips of the canes.
One of the best sources of fine roses is from REPUTABLE mail order nurseries. If ordering roses by mail, it is essential that they arrive early enough to be planted before the end of March. These roses almost always arrive bare root and require immediate attention upon receipt. The package should be opened at once and the entire root system (and even some of the canes if possible) immersed in a large bucket of water. The roses can be kept in the shade in water for as long as ten days.
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