You’ve probably heard the phrase: every rose has its thorn.  Too many, thorns symbolize the danger that lurks behind the beauty of the roses, and all sorts of myths try to explain the presence of these dangerous little daggers on rose stems.  Greek myth suggests that Cupid shot arrows into the roses accidentally after being stung by a bee and it was the sting from his arrow that caused the thorns to take root.

Don’t despair if these little daggers are a thorn in your side.  With a little care and some patience, you can remove those pesky thorns for a nice smooth stem on your rose.

Thorns do actually help the plant drink water, so it is important that you remove them properly and do not inflict excessive damage on the stem.  You need to take your time and practice a proper dethorning technique – otherwise you and the rose will be injured in the process.

Carelessly removing thorns will damage your roses in the long run.  They will not last as long as they should and any peeled or torn skin will hinder the amount of water that makes its way up to the petals.  Proper dethorning takes practice and patience.

You can remove thorns right on the plant, or you can wait until the stem is cut and do it then.  It is best to try and remove thorns on the cane when it is quite young and before the rose blooms if you know that the stem will be cut at some point in the future for display or for the creation of a bouquet.  You can remove thorns by applying slight pressure to the sides to simply push them off the stem.  You can use this same procedure with cut stems.

Removing thorns by hand is a tedious task, and with some roses, the thorns grow so close together that it is almost impossible to push one off without stabbing yourself on another one.  That’s where a dethorning tool can come in handy.

You can purchase a specialty product like a thorn stripper.  This type of tool strips the stem of leaves and thorns. You can also fashion your own with some metal strapping from your local hardware store.  If you do make your own, be sure to file the edges that touch the flower so the stem is not torn excessively in the dethorning process.

To use a dethroning tool, you simply hold it just below the flower and close the jaws together around the stem. Be sure that you don’t use too much pressure when closing the jaws of the stripper because you could damage or even severe the stem.  Lightly drag the dethorner down the stem.  The thorns should pop right off.  It may take a bit of practice to get the hand of a thorn stripper, but after a few tries you should have a good idea of how much pressure is needed to remove the thorns.

You can also remove thorns with a knife.  All you need to do is scrape the stem of the rose with a sharp floral or small pairing knife.  If you are removing thorns from the cut stem, then you might consider only removing the thorns and leaves that lie below the water level.

You want to think carefully about whether or not you need to remove all the thorns from your roses.  It is important to remove rose thorns when the flowers will be in a hand held bouquet or worn on the lapel.  When placing cut stems in a vase for display, you should remove the thorns that will be below the surface of the water, but you don’t need to take off those that will be above water level.  Removing thorns can shorten the life of your roses so be sure that you aren’t over dethorning your blooms.

An important time to do some dethorning, though, is when you are preparing plant litter for your compost pile.  After pruning off any dead or decaying canes from your rose bush, you should consider removing the thorns before tossing the old stems into your compost pile.  Removing the thorns will make it safer for you to work and exposing the stem in this way will also help sped up the decomposition process.

Hybrids, Teas, Floribundas, Grandifloras—the world of roses are so vast and confused that even the most experienced gardener may find himself or herself confused. So what exactly are hybrid tea roses? Hybrid tea roses are the result of crossing the Hybrid Perpetual (a European rose) with the Tea rose from China.

Simply stated, hybrid tea roses are the roses you see in the florist’s window in the days following up to Valentine’s Day. Hybrid tea roses are the classic image of rose beauty. They have large blooms (typically 6 inches in diameter), and usually only produce one bloom per stem. The bloom unfolds elegantly, with large velvet petals that spiral out from the center in mesmerizing layers. Hybrid tea roses are a favorite of gardener’s who love to cut long-stemmed flowers to put on display. They are also a favorite of photographers who love to capture the explosion of petals and colors that hybrid tea roses offer. Because they are known to flower continuously, hybrid tea roses are often referred to as ever blooming or monthly roses.

Hybrid tea roses became wildly popular in the middle of the nineteenth century, when they became “the” rose to have in the garden. The Victorian Era saw a flurry of experimentation with cross pollinization among plant breeders, eventually resulting in the culmination of hybridized tea roses. Victorian Era plant breeders sought to balance elegance and beauty with perpetual flowering, and they seemed to achieve this in the propagation of hybrid tea roses. The Tea rose, admired for its repeated blooms, was the perfect complement for the Hybrid Perpetual.

The ‘La France’ is generally considered to be the first official hybrid tea rose, although breeders did not keep accurate records in those days. A Frenchman popularly referred to as Giullot, in 1867, discovered it. It is said that his discovery of the La France was an accident. He was attempting to produce a large bright yellow rose, but instead produced a rose with silvery-pink blooms that turned bright pink at the tip of the petals. The flower was fragrant and very large (nearly 5 inches in diameter) for its time. The large bloom and dramatic colors of the La France made it the star of its day.

Hybrid Tea roses continued to grow in popularity. Their long ‘lollipop’ stems allowed for clear visibility of the bloom and easy cutting. With their vivid color designs and the elegance of their unfurling buds, they were perceived as much more dramatic than previous roses. Perhaps most importantly, hybrid tea roses produced larger and more frequent blooms.

Today, hybrid tea roses are much more commonly grown for cut flowers. They are no longer as prominent in landscape settings as they were during the Victorian Era. However, if you’d like to add the classic beauty of the hybrid tea rose to your garden, here are a few tips on choosing the right hybrid tea rose for you.

Do you want big blooms on long stems that you can arrange and put on display? Hybrid tea roses are probably for you. If you’re looking for roses to landscape your home, consider Grandifloras or climbing roses, instead.

Do you want a rose that emits a strong fragrance? If this is the case, hybrid tea roses may not be for you. Hybrid tea roses usually only give off a faint scent.

Do you want a relatively low-maintenance rose, or are you willing to water every day in during the hot summer months? In general, hybrid tea roses require a lot of water, especially during hot weather. If you’re not prepared to do a lot of watering, hybrid tea roses may not be your best choice. Also, hybrid tea roses do not enjoy the company of weeds, so be prepared to provide proper maintenance.

Can you deal with thorns? Hybrid tea roses are notorious for their thorns. If you don’t think you’ll have the patience to deal with this thorny issue, you might want to reconsider hybrid tea roses. However, breeders have been able to produce several thornless varieties of hybrid tea roses. These thornless roses might be a little more expensive and difficult to find, but the trouble is most definitely offset by their beauty.

A barefoot rose is not actually something that means you go barefoot in your rose garden. It is a descriptor that indicates that the roots of the rose are exposed. The rose is, essentially, barefoot. Such rose are also sometimes called bare root roses (but barefoot is a much more fun term).

Most people who choose to plant barefoot roses are those who are looking for that “one” rose, the rose that is “just right.” Sometimes a local nursery just will not have what you are looking for. This is where catalogs and the Internet come in. Most of these businesses that send your rose products through the mail will not send the rose in a container filled with dirt. Most of the time it will be a barefoot rose, roots exposed. Such plants, though they can turn out to be very successful and very beautiful, do require some special attention at the outset.

Barefoot rose gardening can be a very rewarding experience, as it allows you to personally choose the plants that you think better reflect your personality and the feel of your landscape. The following steps can help you ensure that your barefoot roses survive and thrive.

First of all, when the rose arrives, you should immediately look it over. Open the shipping container as soon as it arrives. Be on the look out for broken canes and roots. Trim off damaged sections of the rose with sterilized and sharp pruning shears. This can help prevent diseases like rot and crown galls. Next, you should soak the roots over night in water. Soaking the roots will help them rehydrate. If you would like, you can also add a diluted rooting activator solution to the water. If you do add rooting activator or add other mild supplements be sure to save the water to use when you plant the rose.

Proper preparation of the planting hole is important for your barefoot rose. Measure your root system and make the hole one and a half times as deep and as wide as the length of the root system. You should create a small mound of soil at the center of the hole. This mound is meant as a support to the root crown. A new rose bed or soil with a low nutrient value may require that you add a small amount of bone meal or of phosphate rock to the bottom of the hole. Powdered seakelp, though not necessary, sprinkled on the sides and bottom of the planting hole, can also provide the rose with more nutrients.

When you plant your rose, make sure that you do so according to your hardiness zone. It is possible to find this information on the Internet, at a local nursery, or from a local master gardener or horticulture professional. The depth at which you plant your rose is determined by the hardiness zone. For zones requiring more shallow holes, simply fill in the bottom and make your mound higher.

Place the root crown at the top of the mound and arrange the roots down and over the top of the mound. Try to get the roots as equally distributed around the mound as possible. Rose roots grow according to their placement at planting. You want them to be spread and to create a good system. Roots should never wrap around the rose. They should always be spread out. Hold the rose while you fill in the hole with soil. Carefully water the soil around the roots as you do so to ensure that air pockets around the roots are removed. Do not let the rose sink as you do this, as this will change its depth.

After, and only after, the rose has been watered in should you apply root stimulator. If you used the activator in your soaking solution for the rose, this is the time to use that water. Applying activator before the rose is watered in can result in root burn. After finishing with the watering, build up soil around the rose plants exposed canes (make sure the top two bud eyes are still exposed, though). When the first new leaves appear and the bud eyes begin swelling, take the soil away from the canes and create a watering well around the rose’s base.

Now it is time to enjoy the blooms of your labor.

Many beginners to the hobby of rose gardening assume that they will have to prepare to make a great deal of fuss over their flowers. The common misconception is that all roses are delicate and liable to simply drop dead at any time. Most people are pleasantly surprised to discover that roses actually need relatively little care. Unless you plan to grow roses for exhibition, they are not too hard to grow, and they can provide a great deal of enjoyment as they are beautiful to look upon and delicious to smell.

While roses are not terribly difficult to cultivate, they are just like other plants in that it is important to give them proper care. They are not more difficult than most other plants to care for, but they do require some care and careful planting. When you decide to plant a rose garden, it is important to keep in mind that you will need to care for and fertilize your roses, and ensure that they are well fortified against diseases and pests. There are five basic things that can help beginners as they plant a rose garden. These five tips can help rose garden beginners create a more successful garden.

Know the different types of roses and what kinds of soil and climate they like. A visit to your local plant nursery can help you determine this information rather easily. You could also ask a master gardener or a local horticulturist. Make sure that the varieties of rose that you decide to plant are well suited to survive in your region. Planting roses that only have a fair chance of survival in the growing conditions you have leads only to a measure of frustration. Choosing rose varieties that will thrive ensures that you will have a good rose garden experience, and this is vital to the beginner.

Plant roses in during the autumn months or in early spring. This gives them more time to adjust to their homes, as well as store up energy for a longer and better blooming season later in the year. With the exceptions of container grown roses and mini roses, it is best to use dormant plants when you decide to plant a rose garden. If you are using transplanted rose bushes, wait until the fall when the plant becomes dormant, or in the early spring, while the plant is still dormant.

Ensure that your rose garden is planted where it can get 5 to 6 hours of sunlight. Some climbing roses, shrubs, and Rugosa varieties are fine in shadier areas, but most roses like a decent amount of sun. In order to avoid mildew and blackspot on your roses, you should plant them where they receive morning sunshine. Morning sunshine helps to dry off the leaves, and this in turn prevents blackspot and mildew. Roses that are left in the shade for the first part of the day are not as dried off, and are more susceptible to these afflictions.

When planting your rose garden, make sure that you provide a rich nutrient source for your roses. This does not have to be rose food. It is actually a good idea to use well-rotted manure or compost to the planting holes of your rose plants. Add a bit (only a handful or so) of bone meal and mix it with your compost or manure. This provides a rich fertile environment that nourishes the rose roots and encourages them to strengthen and take better hold. Fertilizer can be added after planting to help continue to provide a soil chock full of nutrients. Organic fertilizers like seakelp and Canola meal are great rose garden fertilizers. When you provide adequate food for your roses, you greatly increase their chances of success.

Finally, make sure that you water your rose garden well upon planting. This is an essential part of planting your rose garden. Water is the most important food a rose can have. A great deal of rose food with little water does not do a great deal of good. However, if you adequately water your rose garden, it will be more successful than a garden that receives specially formulated rose food but hardly any water. Rose food is not a necessity; water is a very big one.

Roses have gotten a bad wrap over the years for being difficult to grow and maintain.  If you are thinking of rose gardening don’t let this rumor stop you.  While rose gardening can prove to be challenging, once you get the hang of it, it really isn’t that bad.

When you first start rose gardening, you will have to choose what type of rose you wish to plant, and no, I’m not talking about the color.  You will have to choose between bare-root, pre-packaged, and container-grown roses. Bare-root roses are sold in the winter and early spring.  They should be planted as soon as frosts are over and the ground is warm and workable.  Pre-packaged roses are bare-root plants that are sold in a bad or box with something around the roots to retain moisture, such as sawdust.  Container-grown roses are grown, you guessed it, in containers.  They will be either budding or already in bloom when they become available in the early spring.

Planting in rose gardening is not that much different than any other type of plant.  The most important thing, as always, is good, healthy soil and a prime planting area.  It doesn’t matter whether your roses are bare-root or container-grown, the planting methods are the same as any other shrub.  Make sure the spot you choose has good drainage, gets plenty of sunlight, and will not overcrowd your roses.  Before planting, any dead leaves and thin or decayed shoots need to be cut off.  Any damaged or very long roots also need to be trimmed.  Soak bare-root roses in water about 10-12 hours to restore moisture in the roots before planting and water the soil before planting as well.  Make sure the hole you have dug is large enough for the root growth of the rose.  Also it is a good idea to use compost or mulch.  After all, roses like extra nutrients just like any other plant.

Roses need the same things as other plants, they are just a bit needier.  One of the most important things to remember in rose gardening is that roses are heavy feeders and will need several fertilizer applications.  Fertilizing should be started in early spring and discontinued in early fall.  Make sure not to over-fertilize (fertilize should come with instructions) and water after each feeding.  Roses require large amounts of water; a thorough watering twice a week should be enough.

Pruning is an essential part to flower gardening.  It increases blooms and encourages healthy plant growth. Different varieties of roses have different instructions for pruning, so you might want to read up on your rose types and see what is suggested.

The main thing to remember in rose gardening is to water, water, and water some more.  One other thing about rose gardening is the amount of fertilizer and nutrients you will need to use, and the pruning that needs to be done to keep your roses under control and healthy.  Even though rose gardening takes a little more time and roses are more work, they are one of the most unique and beautiful plants, and definitely worth the extra work.