A good question on Knock Roses
1Sandy B. wrote:
We planted knockout roses this year and have never had roses in the past. You
say to cut rose back to the bud, is that above or below the bud? Also, you say
to mound dirt or mulch around the root to prepare it for winter. We have small
white rock around the base now (on top of tarp paper)and I don’t want to have to
remove the rock. What else can we do? We live in Missouri, winters get pretty
cold. And lastly, our red & pink knockout roses are growing like crazy both
up & out, while our yellow one is not growing half as much, although it is
very healthy looking. Is that typical?
Dear Sandy:
Knockout roses are a bit different from other traditional hybrid teas, and because of this difference you will still need to trim them back but it instead you wont take them back as far. Tradition roses are normally cut back 1/3 in the spring however with knockouts being a bush type rose, you will do light trim throughout the season. You want to make sure you cut just below the bud but not at the bud. Instead of removing the rocks why don’t you consider buying a frost blanket that you can secure over the bush, which are available at most nurseries and or catalogs. Lastly, yes you can have knock rose bushes that can grow at different rates and probably due to some genetic differences especially with yellow roses as they do not seem to have the same growths rates as their red counterparts.
My Best,
Stan DeFreitas
Mr. Greenthumb