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The spring light is shining through this crystal clear white rose that may well be the emblematic White Rose of Yorkshire. To get attractive blooms and glossy foliage try the following tips.

Tips to Get Great Roses.

• The first flush of Rose blooms are normally expected in June but with warmer springs and careful choice of plants to may get flowers earlier. Chelsea flower show in May seems to have great blooms in full flower.
• Old fashioned roses and ramblers that only flower once do not need pruning in spring if they were tidied up in Autumn.
• Plant patio and miniature roses for a summer display. Always soak container grown plants prior to planting.
• I was taught to prune roses by Easter but as that is a moveable feast so do your pruning when the Forsythia is in bloom.
• In Spring complete the tidy up and give a dressing of a balance rose fertilizer or well composted horse manure.
• For roses prone to fungal attack spray with a fungicide or tar wash. A good mulching helps protect against mildew.
• Watch out for early greenfly as they like the soft young shoots and buds. You can treat them with  a soapy wash or insecticide.
• Loosen compacted soil around roses so water and nutrients can soak in but don’t damage roots on grafted trees as you may get a crop of suckers.
• Remove any suckers at root level by pulling them away rather than cutting.
• Try layering to get a new plant. Take a young stem and peg it to the ground about 6 inches from its end. Nick the pegged point so roots can form and put a stone over the peg to conserve moisture.
• Water if it is a dry spring.

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It is not too late to prune your Roses for summer. Even though young shoots will have started to open and turn to leaf I still have to prune my Hybrid Tea Roses and trim the others.

Pruning Tips

• A hard prune will help get larger blooms. A light prune should give a good display of flowers
• Prune out all dead wood and dispose of rather than compost.
• Cut out weak stems and branches and all broken or crossing stems. Aim to get an open centre
• To renovate an old neglected bush prune quite hard down to 6 inches or so.
• Do not leave too much stem above a bud or it will die back to the bud and beyond. Rather prune just above a bud facing the way you want the plant to grow usually an outwards facing bud. Use a cut that slopes away from the bud so rain runs away.

Give the pruned shrub a light dusting of growmore and spray to protect against fungal disease if they are prone to blackspot or mildew.