Fertilize roses in spring: When, how often and what fertilizer do garden roses and potted roses need?

There is certainly hardly a hobby gardener who does not have at least oneRose in the gardenhas. The magnificent queen of flowers makes hearts beat faster and also scores points with its relatively easy care. Nevertheless, this garden plant also needs a certain amount of attention and fertilizing roses in spring is also part of it. If you want to enjoy breathtaking blooms in summer, you should provide your roses with the necessary nutrients to give them strength. Here's what you should know when fertilizing your roses in the spring.

The rule is that rose bushes need fertilizer twice a year - once in spring and once in summer after the main bloom. Roses sprout in spring and then form buds and their characteristic flowers. Of course, for all of this you need strength in the form of nutrients - so fertilizer is essential right at the beginning of the season!

When should you fertilize roses in spring?

In principle this depends on the weather, but you can usually do this as early as mid-March after you have cut the bushesmissed her spring pruninghave. A good indicator that it's time are the new shoots. So if the plant starts to sprout, you can take care of the right fertilizer. If you missed March, you can also fertilize the roses in April, but as early as possible.

Which fertilizer?

Long-term fertilizer is ideal because the soil only absorbs its nutrients gradually, which means the plant is supplied over a longer period of time. Choose a fertilizer that...vegetable (e.g. compost)and animal ingredients (e.g. stable manure). Horn shavings and cattle dung are wonderfully suitable, the latter in particular has an optimal nutrient composition for roses, but should not be used fresh, but should be left to rot for six months.

If you fertilize the roses in spring, also make sure that the fertilizer contains more potassium than nitrogen. Nitrogen promotes the formation of leaves and shoots, but not that of flowers. However, if you want to promote new growth, use more nitrogen. If you want to be on the safe side, you can simply fertilize your roses in spring with a special rose fertilizer. This is tailored to the needs of the plants.

How is fertilization done?

It is important that organic fertilizer is always worked shallowly into the soil. To do this, distribute the selected fertilizer around the root areas of the rose bushes. Then loosen the soil using a hand rake or a hand shovel, mixing fertilizer and soil. Be careful not to damage the roots.

Fertilize roses in the pot

Compact rose types such as dwarf roses, floribunda roses or small noble roses can also be usedin a bucket or flower potbe cultivated. And of course you also have to supply them with nutrients, because these disappear quite quickly given the limited space. What should you consider when fertilizing roses in pots in spring?

Fertilize potted roses properly in spring

You can give long-term fertilizer as soon as you plant the roses in the pot. If your plant has been in its pot for a long time, May is a good month when flowering begins. Remember that roses have quite high nutrient requirements and you can and should fertilize them more often in the container. So after you fertilize your roses in spring (May), regular fertilization is important and beneficial and can be continued until September. If you use slow-release fertilizer, it is sufficient to fertilize the container roses two or three times a year.

Organic or would you prefer mineral?

Organic fertilizersare preferred, but are also absorbed more slowly by the soil because the natural microorganisms in the soil first have to decompose the raw materials. This variant not only promotes soil life, but also the formation of humus. In addition, in this way you receive a wonderful long-term fertilizer that supplies the rose bushes evenly with nutrients for up to five months. This even makes the second fertilizer application in summer unnecessary.

Mineral fertilizersin turn offer the advantage that the nutrients are passed on to the plants immediately, as they consist of water-soluble minerals and fertilizer salts. For example, if you suspect a nutrient deficiency, a mineral fertilizer is the perfect solution to quickly provide the plants with everything they need. This type of fertilizer is also available in the form of a slow-release fertilizer. To slow the release of nutrients, the fertilizer beads are sealed in a layer of resin, which only dissolves over time due to moisture and temperature. ThisFertilizer can the plantssupply for up to six months.