I live in NJ and have been blessed with amazing soil so I doubt I will be much help. I just wanted to say that I have two of these minature rose bushes planted in my front yard one for over 2 years now. The yellow plant has quadrupled in size and currently has over 50 roses/buds on it. The mini red one is slowly catching up and hasn't produced as many roses but I think should do as well as the yellow one next year. They both survived the wicked snow we had last winter and came back strong. I gave it Bayer Advanced All-In-one Rose Care once because the leaves had something eating at them but that's about it. They have really been a low maintenance plant. I wish you luck with them as I have really enjoyed mine. :o)
Mine just exploded in the past two months with blooms. I literaaly do not have to do a thing to that plant but I walk past it every morning before work and look at it proudly as if I had something to do with it being so stinkin' cool. :p
Mini-rose hardiness varies. It depends on how they were treated before you got them. If you treat them well, they can last awhile. The first thing I'd do is get it in full sun. This is *very* difficult to do indoors, roses really aren't meant to be indoors. They'll get spider mites. They also don't like to be transplanted, but that pot is tiny.
I'd suggest you put it in a big pot (at least 5 gallons) outdoors. Roses are prone to many diseases, including black spot, and it is very difficult to keep them looking beautiful using only organic means. They're high maintenance. I use neem oil on mine, but the bugs here are terrible, and the foliage usually looks dreadful.
If they do die back, there's a good chance they'll come back, so don't abandon all hope. Prune after blooms.
My opinion, they just need bigger pots. There are probably 3 plants right there in that one pot. Pull them out, separate them and put them in pots of their own. Miniature roses ARE really hearty. Mine are all in containers and have thrived (in part sun) and minimal care. I've separated them all out and left only one or two in a very large 5 gallon container. They have survived frosts and heat and the moldy rotting weather in Houston.
How big of pots should I use? I'm sort of squeamish about separating them because that would mean separating the roots, and I'm terrified of damaging or traumatizing them. Do you have any tips?
It depends how big the plant is, I recommend (if you don't want to separate them) a pot at least 3 times bigger. You'll have to detangle the roots or at least comb them out a little before you transplant. You can trim it back later, when it's settled in, you'll want to anyway before the end of winter, right? I'm not sure about indoor plant trimmings, but you should prolly trim it back at least a little, train it up instead of out or out instead of up, depending how you want it.
Thank you for telling me about the defoliation, holy crap. I feel so much better. I was like "WHAT? It's dying before I've even had a chance to care for it??"
Do you think putting it on a pan with bed of rocks with water in the bottom would give it enough humidity to survive inside?
Hmm. I live in Los Angeles; it doesn't often get down to freezing, here. It will be okay outside?
I just repotted it today; I was going to separate them, but when I saw how tightly bound together they were I decide against it. It's a cloudy day, but a decent temperature, so they should be okay for today... I'll move them into a partial sun area sometime later, though, so I don't have to worry about them getting too much sun tomorrow before I wake up. =P
Thanks so much for your help!! They've been defoliating like crazy, and I'm taking comfort in the fact that it's probably normal. I'm just going to let them rest for a while, like you said. =)
Always repot plants you get from the store. Always always. Chances are that your plant has been growing in that pot since it was tiny, and if it's mature enough to be flowering then the roots are probably wrapping around themselves and crowding each other out. Put them in a bigger container than you think you need - I saw a couple other people recommending a 5 gallon pot, and that would be great, but even a 2.5 should be fine - and use potting soil not garden soil.
Put a pan under the pot and water the rose once a week until water drips out the bottom into the pan (you can also spritz them at the midweek point if the soil looks really dry). Other than that, just keep an eye on them! Look under the leaves when you water and check for mites or aphids. Check the stem where it meets the soil for mildew. If the leaves turn color, google whether they need more water/less water/more nutrients - leaves are a really good indicator! I personally wouldn't prune it until it's been in the bigger pot for several months. Let it grow for now.
Most pests you can kill by using a very very weak soap spray. Get a little squirt bottle - the one I have holds about a cup and a half of water - and put in, like, a half a teaspoon of liquid dish soap. I prefer Ivory because it doesn't have all the additives other soaps do.
Spray it on, let it sit for an hour or so, and then spray the plant with a lot of water to wash the soap off. Otherwise you can burn the plant.
For mildew, put the plant in a warmer place with more direct sun. Check the holes in the bottom of the pot to make sure they aren't clogged - just poke 'em with a knitting needle or chopstick. And reduce watering by half... by which I mean keep watering once a week or so, but use less water.
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I'd suggest you put it in a big pot (at least 5 gallons) outdoors. Roses are prone to many diseases, including black spot, and it is very difficult to keep them looking beautiful using only organic means. They're high maintenance. I use neem oil on mine, but the bugs here are terrible, and the foliage usually looks dreadful.
If they do die back, there's a good chance they'll come back, so don't abandon all hope. Prune after blooms.
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Do you think putting it on a pan with bed of rocks with water in the bottom would give it enough humidity to survive inside?
Hmm. I live in Los Angeles; it doesn't often get down to freezing, here. It will be okay outside?
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Thanks so much for your help!! They've been defoliating like crazy, and I'm taking comfort in the fact that it's probably normal. I'm just going to let them rest for a while, like you said. =)
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Put a pan under the pot and water the rose once a week until water drips out the bottom into the pan (you can also spritz them at the midweek point if the soil looks really dry). Other than that, just keep an eye on them! Look under the leaves when you water and check for mites or aphids. Check the stem where it meets the soil for mildew. If the leaves turn color, google whether they need more water/less water/more nutrients - leaves are a really good indicator! I personally wouldn't prune it until it's been in the bigger pot for several months. Let it grow for now.
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Spray it on, let it sit for an hour or so, and then spray the plant with a lot of water to wash the soap off. Otherwise you can burn the plant.
For mildew, put the plant in a warmer place with more direct sun. Check the holes in the bottom of the pot to make sure they aren't clogged - just poke 'em with a knitting needle or chopstick. And reduce watering by half... by which I mean keep watering once a week or so, but use less water.
Good luck!
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