This year, September's been a good month in Sydney for rose growers. So long as you don't count the hail that fell at the start of the month! The rain has been useful, but cool nights have brought the characteristic mildew to several bushes. Taking the effort to spray will protect the main flush of blooms in October and November.
A good few warm days have coaxed some early buds open, so this month's diary has some new photos. This is my new hybrid tea, Tropical Sunset:
Other early-flowering hybrid teas are Double Delight, Granada and La Passionata. Kardinal is gathering its energies for a huge flush:
My pink tea rose collection is amongst the earliest to flower. Every single bush except Mme Antoine Mari is flowering already - even the new ones I bought in July. Monsieur Tillier has now flowered 12 months running - a first for me but apparently pretty regular for established specimens. This is a large, early bloom from Mrs B R Cant:
Growing right next to it is Mme Lombard, with a tint that is more peach and less silvery lilac by comparison. Its blooms open quicker and are less 'full' in appearance:
And here is Maman Cochet, with a light pink bloom that is heavy with petals. Unlike the other two, its outer petals are paler than those in the centre:
Each new season seems to bring a few products for rose growers to use in their feeding program. I've previously written about 4vital, which I'm very impressed with as a trace element feeder. The new growth from my bushes has been very lush and thick, and I'm sure that's partly due to the magnesium, phosporus, boron and calcium combination that 4vital provides. I plan to use it quarterly this year to see if the effects can be maintained.
Two new products from Yates are worth a look. The first is their re-formulated fish emulsion, now called Dynamic Lifter Concentrated Fish Emulsion. It is a stronger version of their previous product, at the same price. Even the old Yates product was far bettter value than the more popular Charlie Carp. The new concentrate dilutes at 25 ml per 9 litre (2 gallon) watering can, as opposed to 90 ml for Charlie Carp. The price per litre of concentrate is comparable, so the Yates works out much cheaper. Sure, Charlie Carp is made from whole fish and it helps rid us of a pest on inland waterways, but the 'feel good' premium is awfully high - more than 300%.
The second product, Dynamic Lifter Seaweed concentrate, is possibly even better than the market leader, Seasol. There's no information about it at Yates' web site yet, but the product is now on shelves at Woolworths and Bunnings for roughly $10 per litre. It's not pure seaweed, but the added ingredients (fulvic and humic acids) are targeted straight at root growth stimulation, which is what the seaweed does well. It also has a wetting agent to assist in soil penetration. All things considered, it should be one excellent tonic for roses.
Scotts has now launched its Miracle Gro for Roses in Australia too. It's a different formula from the US version. Compared to the normal Australian Miracle Gro it has one plus - added magnesium. It also has a whopping 20% nitrogen but for some reason it has relatively less phosphorus and only 9% potassium (which is very low for a food designed for flowering plants). Phostrogen for Roses is a better product, but sadly it seems to have disappeared or been dropped by the distributor (Debco).
Whatever you use to feed your roses, keep them well fed this month. The rewards will speak for themselves. Enjoy spring!
Daniel