Roses start blooming 6 to 8 weeks after the leaves first shoot, and stop blooming when the temperature goes to 0 degrees celsius. With our warm weather this fall, many roses are still blooming here in Niagara. Here's a question that people are asking:
"Q. Even though winter is just around the corner, I’ve been noticing white rose bushes that are covered with medium-sized flowers still blooming freely. The bushes are 2 to 3 feet tall and very bushy. Do you have any idea what variety it might be?
A. While there are many white rose varieties, I suspect the one you have been admiring is a floribunda rose variety called Iceberg. This variety was introduced in 1958 and is a favorite landscape plant throughout the country."
Iceberg is one of the most widely planted white roses. Why? Because it blooms and blooms from summer into late fall.
Here in Niagara, we'll have hard frost and then freezing temperatures, and there will be frozen little rose buds on the bushes. We'll know the plants are dormant for the winter. There's no snow in California, except for the mountains. If we were in California, what would we do to make sure our roses go dormant for the winter? You would strip off the old leaves in late December, so your plants are asleep until spring. And blooming peak season is April in southern California. Now that's a tantalizing thought for us in Niagara, where April is daffodils and tulips, and the peak blooming month for roses is June.
