I beg to differ with that old adage. Coastal residents grow a plethora of vibrant, stunning, beautiful roses of all shapes, sizes and varieties.
As with any plant selection, you should choose your roses with your specific location in mind. What type of a rose do you want to plant? Floribunda, Hybrid teas, climber, ground cover and where will it reside. What are the growing conditions in the planting area? Sunny or shady?
For those who think the plants require too much effort, what with fertilizing, aphids, fungus, salt air, wind and deer, there are varieties that are resistant to such issues and require minimal maintenance. These concerns are similar to any vegetable, flower or tree we grow. Doesn’t each plant require the best placement in the landscape or garden? What about attending to the cabbage moth in the vegetable garden, or pruning the blueberries in the spring or baiting for slugs. Roses are no different.
To assuage your hesitation, there are excellent resources at hand. OSU’s publication Landscaping with Roses | OSU Extension Service (oregonstate.edu) is the ‘go to’ article for all of your rose selection, planting and care questions. Mark your calendar for the upcoming Growing Oregon Gardeners: Level Up Series 2022, ‘Growing Great Roses’ webinar May 10, 2022. All of the webinars in this series are FREE!
(Psst… a link to all of the ‘Growing Oregon Gardeners: Level Up Series, both 2022 and 2021, can be accessed here!)
This past Saturday, Master Gardeners and Apprentices spent the morning pruning and tidying the Pioneer Museum Rose Garden. Ten people turned out – 5 Hardy Perennials, 4 Apprentices and a photographer from the Tillamook County Pioneer. The roses had been wind pruned recently, but still needed dead wood removal and additional pruning for shaping and plant health. This was an opportunity for the Apprentices to learn from ‘hands on experience’.
Here’s the Pioneer’s video by Don Backman, pruning roses with the Casteels and Tillamook County Master Gardeners at the Tillamook County Pioneer Museum rose garden, February, 2022.
OSU’s video on pruning is worth viewing if you are just beginning or need a refresher.
All of this being said — You CAN grow roses on the Coast!
You may also want to read an article entitled ‘A Gardeners’ Cautionary Tale’ reprinted from the HPSO (Hardy Plant Society of Oregon) Quarterly, Fall 2021 edition relating the importance of proper gloves for pruning.
For more about Tillamook County Master Gardeners, go to www.tillamookmastergardeners.com.
