Your Questions Answered

Sept 18th
Hi

I ordered 5 rose this year from you guys, most of them are grow well, but only the Pomponella I received 2 months ago is almost no grown while I treat them all the same. Even the Novalis I received one month later has a significant growth.

Could you help me to solve this problem?

Thanks
Amy.

Request for images:

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Response:
Beautiful healthy leaf buds. Nothing wrong that I can see. Stem looks green and healthy. If anything I’d say add some potting mix… make sure it’s NOT Azalea, Rose and Gardenia mix. It should only be about 2cm below the graft to top of the mix. It could be stressing a bit if the roots are close to the surface of the mix.
Also looks a bit dry in the photo. Maybe not but with the roots so close to the top of the mix it will need more water to keep them damp.
Hope that helps,
Many thanks for the photos,
Lyn.

Eumundi Roses Further Response to General Question relating to above:

This is a very common question, so let’s address it here as well as my direct response. It may help other gardeners. There are many reasons a plant may not be growing. The most common reason is lack of water or a plants inability to receive water or something that is depriving it of water. In Qld it is very different growing roses to Southern States where winter may be wet and cold and the necessity for water is less. For whatever reason some roses simply may not grow well. In this case Pomponella is usually one of the best and a vigorous grower with very few problems. Therefore we treat this one as something happening that is causing the plant not to grow compared to the other 4 plants mentioned.
Not all roses are the same in their habits first of all. This year has been colder than normal in our region and many of the roses are only just breaking dormancy now. Some are still dormant. It is possible this rose is still asleep.

The other factors to look at are water, sunshine and pests and disease.
Roses will live with very little attention, but they won’t ever be the best they can be without some care.

Water: Make sure your plants are receiving water sufficient and deep enough to reach the lower extent of the root system. In pots consider a saucer filled with water for them particularly if you’re headed on holidays and they won’t have regular watering. A plastic bottle with a drip hole in it can be a lifesaver for plants while you’re not there. Roses love cool, damp roots and warm dry tops. For sick or not growing plants first course of action might be to literally soak the plant with water each day for about 2 weeks and see if that helps.

Heat and Sunlight: Choose your spot carefully. Sunlight is everything to roses. Best is morning sun early morning to early afternoon, but anything will do as long as it’s 5 to 6 hours of natural sunlight every day. Without sunlight roses will stress and potentially die. Try moving the rose and see if it does better in a different spot if it’s persistently bad. In this case it may appear that all the conditions are the same but just perhaps they’re not quite. In the garden a bit more difficult to move but in pots it could be easy. Make sure the roses or pots aren’t being heated too much by a wall or concrete for example that is close by. Radiated heat may be heating the pot/roots too much and plant would suffer.

Pests: Nasties such as ants or curl grubs could be attacking the roots of the plant and therefore preventing it taking up water and nutrient. You’ll soon find them if they’re there. Ant rid baits are good for ants and curl grubs; butcher birds and magpies love them. They turn into beetles so if you have lots of beetles look for curl grubs.

Dodgy plant: You’ll know from the very start if the plant isn’t going to grow. The biggest reason plants won’t grow from the start is if the roots at some stage of the process have been allowed to dry out too much. Sometimes they may have been in the bag too long at the store without receiving water. Occasionally a batch may come through that has been on the sorting bench just a bit too long or held in the holding pit a bit too long but generally most are good. When you receive your plant in the Winter and they’re dormant check if they are dormant or dead. It can be very difficult to tell to an untrained eye particularly on red or purple roses. The stems may take on a dark colour that might look dead. To anyone who knows roses it’s easy and this is how to do it. Look at the leaf buds. Tiny new buds will be forming where the leaves will emerge. If those buds are alive, then generally the roots and stems are too and in theory the plant has absolutely no reason not to thrive. If they’re looking quite dead and no new buds are coming the plant is probably dead or dying. The time to complain is when you are purchasing the plant. If you can’t see healthy leaf buds, either improve your glasses and take a closer look or point out then that you think the plant is not healthy. From here, you won’t get a plant that has no reason to grow. They will not be sold. The bin is the only place for a dead plant…. but be sure it’s dead. A rose can be looking quite dead with no buds at all, pour the water in, turn on the sunlight and they’ll surprise all the time with healthy new water shoots straight out from the graft at the base. The best way to achieve that is to cut the plant just above any remaining healthy leaf buds or cut it all back to the graft (Don’t completely remove the grafted section or you’ll only get rootstock growth) If within 6/12 months no new growth is seen the plant is most likely dead. Best advice; water, water, water and then more water. It’s very difficult to give a rose too much water unless you’ve planted it in a place that won’t drain. Usually the problem is something lacking for that particular plant if the plant is not dead from the start.
I personally inspected and delivered this rose so I know for fact it was healthy and showing signs of growth.

Weaker breed: Some plants are definitely weaker breeds than others. In the case example here, Pomponella is one of the best and strongest. Not the problem with this rose. Some just don’t do well and best avoided. Some are stronger from other suppliers depending on the quality of the budstock, the growing season conditions and the care they receive in growing. Again you’ll see healthy buds if the plant is ok. If it doesn’t grow thereafter it may just be slow or it may not like the conditions of the position it’s in. Some are very fussy and particularly about sunlight.

Weather: If it’s constantly cloudy roses will stress. They love their sunlight. Wind is never good. They detest being rocked in their spot. Roses prefer not to have their roots disturbed unless they are dormant or well established. Wind will also destroy new leaves and leaf bu

Fertiliser: Look up our blog on fertiliser recipes. Generally water only to a sick plant. If it’s simply doing nothing, then fertiliser may help. Calcium nitrate will promote leaf and stem growth. Potassium for fruit and flowers once the plant is established.

Potting or Planting medium: Check the mix first before planting in it. It must NOT say suitable for Azaleas, Roses and Gardenias with a PH of 4.8
Use only premium well known brands with PH of 6/6.5 for roses. They don’t need fertiliser from the start but some premium mixes now have some in it and it doesn’t seem to hurt the roses. Generally though a premium mix without is fine

Should you return a rose that isn’t growing: .. If you bought it from a store with unconditional guarantee where the store loves to give away money, yes do. Here we work too hard for that and we don’t sell the plant in the first place if it has any reason not to grow. From the day the plant is received into your care we offer assistance and advice but no returns or refunds. It is a natural living thing and like people they can die unexpectantly with no obvious reason or be sick all their lives for no apparent reason. That’s part of the life and joy in gardening to care for plants and to learn to grow them better with each one.

Eumundi Roses
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July 17th
Good morning!
I have a question about the beautiful purple roses you delivered yesterday. Are they suitable to be planted in pots?
Thank you

_Response: _

_Yes, they will be. Nursemaid them for a little while. When you pot them I use 50/50 potting mix and mushroom compost. Helps hold more moisture. They don’t like being dry. Very important that they don’t dry out until well established and even then they don’t like being dry. Not sopping wet, but damp is good. _

Eumundi Roses

Sept 20th
Good morning!
Our roses are growing beautifully as you can see. Quick question though, I have found some yellowing leaves on one plant. Any ideas what might cause that?

Response:

It’s a bit hard to tell from the photo exactly, but is the stem looking healthy? If it’s not prune the stem back to just above the next healthy green leaf bud. They do tend to do that at this time of year. The plant is using lots of energy to produce new leaves and buds. It tends to shed anything it doesn’t want. It could be black spot. There are debates on the cause of black spot. My Dad swears it’s humidity or overhead watering. I disagree. Mine get the most black spot when they’re dry. Make sure it’s getting enough water and not too much. It’s an early sign of a plant that is stressed in some way. If it hasn’t had fertiliser, some liquid manure or seaweed solution would help. If it has had fertiliser make sure it hasn’t been given too much. I just take the affected leaves off and put them in the bin or burn them, just in case. Generally it’s water the plant is looking for most often.

Thanks for your response
The stem looks healthy ( to my untrained eye) here are more pics. I have taken the affected leaves off now. The rest of the bush looks beautiful!!
Only fertiliser I have given since we got them is the mushroom compost when we planted them with the potting mix.
Should I be giving them more fertiliser?
I can’t wait to see the purple flowers it will produce xx

_Response: _

Sep 20th, 10:58am
Eumundi Roses
I would probably give them some natrakelp or seasol, or similar, liquid manure; not too strong, just follow the instructions on whatever you get. Liquid manure you can make yourself, just manure in a bucket, fill and soak with water, strain off the liquid and water down till it looks like weak tea. Use aged manure; not fresh. They look really healthy in general. I’m wondering if they got a little frosted. The one photo of one of the leaves looks like frost damage or something eaten it when the leaf was developing. Could be that. If the stem is healthy should be nothing to worry about too much. As it warms up lots of water. Ta lots, Lyn.

Thanks lyn xx
I have goats and chickens here, would you suggest either of their manure?

Sep 20th, 2:52pm
Eumundi Roses
That’s fine. Either is ok. Just make sure it’s not fresh. Burns when it’s fresh.

Understood!
Thank you so much for your time and advice xx

4th October 2018
How do you combat aphids? I’m sure these weren’t here yesterday?!

Response:
They do appear overnight. ladybugs. Best of all. Go look for some in gardens or park. Bring home to your roses. They clean them up in no time. Otherwise I just squash them. Don’t like sprays because they kill the lady bugs.
Eumundi Roses

Little buggers!!!
I’ll have to go hunting

Good afternoon Lyn

My purple rose has just produced two flowers and I am bitterly disappointed. They are not purple, more of a burgundy colour. It is a beautiful rose but not what I expected, can you tell me why this may be?? I have attached two photos to show you the colour.

Regards

Response:

_I’d be keen to see more photos of your roses; the actual bush and the flower in natural light. By the two photos you’ve sent, these roses look peculiar and deformed. It may be the photos but that doesn’t look like blackberry nip at all. Please have a look at my website www.eumundiroses.com It has lots of information and photos of what to expect from this rose. It does have a relatively wide colour variance as do most roses. Hydrangeas for example are blue in acid soil and the exact same plant positively pink in alkaline soil. So many elements come together to make up the colour. The purple we achieved is sheer luck and a lot of experience; a combination of weather, nutrients, soil ph, water. I’ve shared all the secrets we have. Unfortunately we can’t control the environment the roses go into. It’s a bit like the leaves on a tree. They don’t all turn out exactly the same colour. That’s nature. Please enjoy the rose for the beauty that it is. The photo I put on facebook wasn’t for advertising. It was a rose we were so thrilled to have produced and put it there to show a bride the exact match for her groom’s tie. The rose generally is quite deep purple here, but that one was at the uppermost end of that scale. Ours during the colder months do tend more toward reddish purples. Your photo is burgundy and nothing like ours. The shape isn’t appearing to be like a hybrid tea and not neat either like blackberry nip. Does it have a really beautiful rose scent? I would find it really hard to believe we supplied the wrong bushes because all we had on board were that particular rose, but it is a very remote possibility so please send me some better photos. I really can’t tell from these. If they do prove to be the wrong breed of course we will replace them, but please know that Blackberry Nip, if that’s what they are, does have the capability in your bushes to be the dark purple the same as ours. It just takes the right ingredients in the right measure. One of the challenges of growing beautiful flowers. _

Eumundi Roses.

I purchased two of the Purple Heart roses – one for myself and one for my mother. These were collected by my mother…. personally on Wednesday 18 July 2018.

My rose is doing very well and has produced a flower!

The only thing is, the rose I thought I had purchased was supposed to be purple. I have attached a photo of it (one is with the flash on, one is without). Is this correct? Its a very pretty deep pink, but its definitely not a purple.

This was the rose I ordered (and I also ordered one for my mother …, who collected both hers and mine. Mum’s has produced 2 flowers and both are the same colour as mine, deep pink):
https://www.eumundiroses.com/collections/purple-heart-collection

Did we perhaps get the wrong rose?

Response:

The colour range of this rose is quite broad. The rose is correct. I have several articles on my website referring to the colour variation in roses. They’re a bit like hydrangea which varies from blue in acid soil to pink in alkaline soil from the same plant. All of the various elements make up the colour. Your plants look extremely healthy. The purple you saw on facebook is about as purple as I have ever seen this rose. The colour is quite true to what the rose was. It’s impossible to predict the colour it will vary to but I do know the one on facebook was growing in soil at ph 5.5 (lowering pH is usually done with sulphur as advised on the packet), we had just prior to that fed the roses through the line with condies crystals and liquid manure and the weather was really hot about 37 degrees and then it dropped suddenly to daytime temperatures of about 20 degrees. About September last year. Other than that it’s all just experimenting. We grow roses for a living and work toward premium colour and health from them. It was sheer luck to achieve the colour we did. The roses you have are also capable of producing the same colour under the same set of circumstances. Hope that helps

Eumundi Roses