photo by Rita Elliott

Miniature Bushes: These roses are not as fussy about pruning as are hybrid teas. Start by removing most leaves so that it is easier to see the branching. Prune out dead, diseased, and old canes and extremely twiggy growth. Remove about half of the year's growth or just prune to the size and shape desired.

If your bush grows too high for the area in which it is planted, then prune even more heavily.

If any sucker growth is around the base of the plant, it is best to try digging it out from the roots. If you are careful, you may repot that sucker until it becomes a new plant. You can also pull it as you would a weed. This is sometimes difficult due to thorns. Ouch!

Miniature climbers: After planting a miniature rose climber do not prune for the first two to three years. They will need to be trained on a trellis like their bigger sisters.

General Tips

Location: A sunny location is important for successful miniature rose culture. Select a site with at least a half-day of direct sunlight. The more sun they receive, the more roses you will have on each plant and the colours will be brighter.

In the ground: Dig a hole at least one metre wide and deep. Now, listen to this: if the ground is too hard for your spade, you know that the soil is not right and the roots will have difficulties doing well. In this case you may want to dig the hole 20 to 25 cm deeper and wider, creating a larger area of loose soil for the roots. A little extra effort at that stage will bring great rewards later. The soil you put back into the hole should contain plenty of organic matter and drain well. Peat moss, compost, dehydrated manure, sand, perlite can be used to improve the soil as needed. Refill the hole to within 10 cm of the top. Take your well-watered mini out of its pot and gently loosen the roots. Set it on top of the soil in the hole and refill the hole so that the mini is planted about one cm deeper than it was in the pot. Water very thoroughly so that the soil fills in around the roots and eliminates air pockets.

Watering: Minis like lots of water. Never allow the soil to dry out completely but also never leave them standing in water. Water the miniatures, especially the roots of the original plant close to the stem, every day for the first two weeks. Then water two or three times a week unless they receive plenty of rain. (Be careful not to over-water, though).

After this initial period water the plant thoroughly once a week, or more if needed.