ROSES MAY BE TRYING TO TELL YOU SOMETHING — LISTEN!

By GAYE HAMMOND HOUSTON ROSE SOCIETY Past President (pictured — Gaye’s rose garden)

Tons of crunchy brown leaves in trees but none on roses? You’re are doing a good job battling brutal weather conditions! At 95 degrees, roses shut themselves down to preserve whatever moisture / food stores they have. This is why::

• You don’t see a lot of new growth

• Some flowers on some roses get dinky or go from having 50 petals to 5

• Some varieties even have flowers that change color in really hot weather

• Some leaves show some spotty sunburn but given it has been up to 110 that is not surprising. Leave these leaves on the plant as it is the leaves that make the food for the plant. Eventually, they will fall off when new leaves are ready to take their place.

In addition, when nighttime temperatures are 80 or above, the bushes do not get the ability to recover from day-time heat stress – which can be a double whammy.

As temperatures come down, roses will gradually get back to normal. To prepare for a fall flush of blooms, we do not “prune” like one would do in February. Fall is the time to “groom” bushes – remove dead wood and any spindly growth that is not big enough to hold up a flower. Now would also be the time to fertilize or add nutrient-rich soil amendments