PLANTING TIPS
Knock Out Roses

One of the best things about Knock Out Roses:
........ they grow fast and get large.

One of the worst things about Knock Out Roses:
........ they grow fast and get large.

One of the hottest sellers to hit the nursery industry in many years. Knock Out Roses offer about 9 months of endless color each year. Just about the only time of year they are not showing off is during the middle of winter.

When choosing a location select an area that gets at least 6 hours or more of sun. Full / hot / all day sun is perfectly fine and encouraged. They are not the best choice for shady locations.

Amend the soil with landscape mix. Fertilize with time released nutrients, and water. Standard irrigation systems are not enough to get them rooted and established during the first few months (especially this time of year with the hotter weather). Hand water deeply a couple of times a week to saturate the planting area in between irrigation cycles to ensure the plants get well established. Once the plants are established and rooted, sprinkler systems should be enough to keep them healthy for many years.

Left alone each shrub can reach heights of 6 plus feet with a width of 4 to 6 feet wide. Great if you have a large area that needs a blast of color with a fast growing plant. Bad if the area you are planting is not large enough to accommodate them. No worries. Knock Outs love to be trimmed pruned and cut back.

The more trimming the plants get, the thicker and hardier the bush becomes and as an added bonus the more color it will produce.

Schedule an annual trim during January or February each year. Shape and trim down to a desired size while the Rose is dormant. It is okay to cut the rose down as small and compact as you like during this time of year, or simply add some shape by taking the edges and tips off the end. During the growing / blooming season trim and shape as desired for size if needed.

Trimming during the blooming season will knock the color and blooms off the plant, but they re-bloom so fast and so readily, you will hardly miss the color. A mild trim also enhances the amount of color so do not be afraid to get the shears out and cut away.