How To Choose The Best Location To Grow Roses In Your Yard

Pink Rose Bushes
(Image credit: Regina Marcenkiene)

I cannot begin to tell you how many times I have had someone tell me how hard roses are to grow. It just really is not true. There are some things a beginning rose-loving gardener can do that will make it very easy for them to be successful. One of those things is choosing where to plant your rose bush.

Tips for Choosing Where to Put a Rose Bed

Select a place for your new rose bed first before you order your roses. For best results, select a spot that gets six to eight hours of good sun a day. The selected spot should be an area that has good drainage with good soil. The soil can be built up by using some compost and, if a bit heavy on the clay or sandy, can be worked up nicely using some soil amendments. Most garden centers carry bagged compost, topsoil, and soil amendments. Once you have selected your garden location, go about working up the soil by adding the amendments needed for your rose bed.

Deciding How Big Your Rose Bed Will Be

Roses need room to grow. Each location for a rose bush should be about a 3 foot (1 m.) diameter space. This will allow for good air movement and will make tending to them easy as well. Using this 3 foot (1 m.) diameter rule will also help you plan the actual size of your new rose bed. Basically, multiply 3 square feet (0.25 sq. m.) by the number of rose bushes you will be growing and this is the proper size for your rose beds. By starting out with choosing a good location to grow your roses even before you buy them, you will be on a better path towards rose growing success.

Stan V. Griep
Writer

Stan V. Griep contributed to Gardening Know How for many years. An American Rose Society Consulting Master Rosarian in the Rocky Mountain District, he served as Gardening Know How's in-house expert on all things roses.