The property we've lived in for the past 3 years has a mature rose bush. A good sized one growing up the side of an old goat shed. Its several feet high and a thick trunk - is that the correct term? We haven't done anything to it and the past few years the roses have not looked particularly spectacular. We're not much in the way of gardeners. There are no other flowers growing on the property. We're moving to our new house in the next 2 weeks. Tonight I walked near the rose bush, its blooming and for the first time its looking beautiful, to the point I'm interested in taking it to our new house. The property we live on has been sold to developers and a bulldozer is taking everything down in August, so the fate of the rose bush is known if we leave it behind. What are its chances of survival if we dig it up and move it to our new house? Better chances of survival than facing a bulldozer. Should we cut it back before digging it up? Any tips on how we should be digging it up and what to do with it in its new location? The house we bought has a huge yard and a lot of overgrown garden, mostly perennials, but that is for another post. There will be no problem finding a spot for this big rose bush. Any tips for rose transplanting will be appreciated.
I wouldn't normally try transplanting any rose bush when it's in flower Whistler but, in your case, it's better to try it than let the poor thing be bulldozed. I think I'd take all the blooms off now and cut it back by about a third. Try to leave plenty of this years growth on it though. Remember to water it well when you transplant it and then simply keep your fingers crossed. Maybe Zuzu will be able to give you better advice than I can though. She should be around shortly. :-D
I'd sure try to salvage it! Maybe all it needs is a little TLC I haven't transplanted a mature bush, only the ones in the nursery pots but I know that watering it with "Start Up" or "Upstart" sure helps. I think it is made by Scotts, in a yellow and green jug. I buy mine at WalMart. It is full of vitamins that stimulate root development. I imagine you'll have to dig pretty deep to get the root ball. Good Luck! Deanna :-D
Ah yes, the lesser of two evils: me or a bulldozer. I took a couple of photos tonight and took a close look at it. Appears there was a trellis there at one time, only a couple of pieces of it is left. The stalk (trunk?) is about the thickness of a quarter to just over an inch around in a part where it branches out. Yes, that is an old dryer in the photo. This is a rental. When the washer and dryer died we put them in the goat shed and bought new ones. The dryer was put outside by someone else who was storing lumber in the shed. And that is some kind of a stump in front of the rose. We'll be able to push it out of the way. There are a couple of unknown flowers growing beside the rose. We know we'll have to cut it back and harvest the roses prior to moving. Thanks for the suggestion of cutting it back by a third. I'm concerned my husband may be a bit more brutal than that. http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/mermaidud ... GBqE1gE6py
Thanks for the photographs Whistler. The rose is a beauty and it certainly would be a shame to leave it to be destroyed. I see you have a couple of pretty big suckers on it - those will have to be completely removed as they take the strength away from the main plant. They are the long, straight stalks on the left of the bush against the goat shed. I hope you manage to get the roots out without too much trouble and that the rose goes on to flourish in your new garden.
I think I would cut that back by half or more. Water well before digging and plan on planting it right away. Watering after planting is going to be important also.
Thanks for the responses. Yes, we will cut and transport immediately and replant as soon as we get there. Trip will be about 45 minutes to new house and rose bush will ride in the back of our horse trailer (without horses!) so it will be protected on its journey. I have posted photos in another discussion of our new overgrown garden, but here is the link again. Any suggestions where we should plant the rose in our new home? The front of our house faces south and the garden does not grown against our house. There is a cement path inbetween where the front yard garden ends and the house. I don't think the front area will work because I'll need a trellis. Will a west exposure work? There is a garden growing against the house on the west side behind the photo of the apple trees. Or will east work? There is a garden behind the garage/shed. It won't get much sun there though.
