The Best Climate To Grow Roses

There is virtually no place in the world where you cannot grow nearly any type of rose you want. However, finding roses that are naturally suited to the climate in which you live is a much better idea (not to mention easier and more satisfying). The rose family is a diverse group of plants that thrive in a wide range of conditions. For nearly every climate, the list of roses you have to choose from is a long one. Like all plants, each classification of rose, and even specific varieties within a classification, has its own tolerances to wind, high or low temperatures, and other climate factors that can affect its performance, if not its very survival. And equally important, your climate dictates how you care for your roses , how often you need to water, which diseases you should watch out for, when to fertilize, and when to do the other stuff that gardeners do.

Climate factors can also affect roses in more subtle ways. For example:The color of a rose variety can be surprisingly different when grown in two different climates, or even in the same climate in different seasons. The size of a plant's flowers can vary also, and certain varieties, especially ones with many petals, may have different climatic requirements in order to open properly. Unless you want to spend your life trying to get your roses to thrive, you should be familiar with the climate you live in and understand how it affects the types of roses you want to grow and dictates the care you give them. Get to know the climate you live in and its influence on the roses you choose and the way you care for them.

The general climate of the city or county you live in is determined by a complex mix of factors: how cold the winters are; how warm the summers are; how sunny or cloudy it is, how humid or dry it is; and a whole bunch of other circumstances you can probably guess. And most of these factors affect how different types of roses grow or perform. The more you know about climate factors, the better rose gardener you can be. If you live in a cold-winter area, make sure that you choose roses that can survive the winter with a minimum of injury. But how do you know how cold it usually gets in your area? If you live in the United States, the easiest way is to look at the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map. This system of plant hardiness zones divides North America into 11 regions, based on average winter minimum temperatures.

The warmest, Zone 11, has an average winter minimum above 40°F (4°C). Each succeeding zone down to Zone 1 averages 10 degrees colder. Zones 1 through 10 are further divided into a and b regions in order to distinguish zones where minimum winter temperatures differ by 5 degrees. Zone maps based on the average lowest temperature are available for most regions of the world. However, because each region is mapped independently, there is no single map of plant climate zones for the world.

When you know how climate affects the way roses grow and how to care for them in your particular climate, you can use that knowledge to decide which roses to plant. The world is rich with lists of recommended roses for specific areas, and you should be able to find a variety that can thrive where you live. Most of these lists are published by local rose societies.

In addition, many retail nurseries and cooperative extension offices offer lists of recommendations as well. You can also visit a local public rose garden and see for yourself how specific roses do in your area.

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