Hi. I am in Zone 6A. I’ll be transplanting a 20 year-old rose bush on November 1. I’ll be mixing some Black Kow manure into the soil while I do it. Should I water the bush with a root stimulator even though the rose bush will sit dormant until the spring (about 6 months from now)? I have some BONIDE “GARDEN RICH ROOT & GROW.’ It is a “IBA ROOT STIMULATOR.’ 4-10-3. Do rose bush roots need a stimulator right before they go dormant… right after a transplant… for 6 cold months? I do not know what kind of rose it is. It is coming from my deceased aunt’s former house. THANK YOU for any advice!!! Eric
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Welcome to the our forum Eric, Soil temperatures can still be warm enough to encourage rose growth. Dig a wide hole too. And I would use the Bonide’s Root Stimulator and drench the roots. More importantly, apply a few inches of mulch at planting. Then after your second hard freeze, surround your rose bush with some more mulch. Too much mulch earlier in the season can give voles a hiding place. Hardwood mulch is good or shredded pine bark. Whatever you have readily available.
What a lovely thing to do to save your aunt’s rose. Please show us a few pictures of the rose blooms next spring, assuming it is not one of the old garden roses that bloom on old wood.
Hi Eric, Modern roses do not got dormant in the usual sense of the word. The tops stop growing due to less than ten hours of sun but the roots continue to grow, slowly, until your ground is frozen. I have been known to use IBA root stimulator when transplanting and I believe it is helpful for me in zone 8B.
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