There are several important keys to keeping roses happy in summer. The most important at this time of year is water. Most roses need thorough soaking once or twice weekly. Water should penetrate down below surface feeder roots. The actual amount varies according to soil. Here at Rosehaven, we have Loess soil with clay about 10 inches below. This means surface water percolates through rapidly. To combat this, I use mulch, approximately two-inches thick. My favorite is cocoa mulch, a by-product of the chocolate industry consisting of hulls of cocoa beans. (And yes, I am a chocoholic who keeps a chocolate bar handy after I’ve spread the cocoa mulch.) Mulching insulates soil surface, slowing evaporation and retaining moisture. More importantly, as mulch breaks down, it enriches the soil and improves its texture and quality.

You know you have healthy soil if earthworms are present. When we first moved here, there were few, if any. Now, just 30 months later, many of the garden beds are teeming with worms. I rejoice at their presence because it means the plants will do better. Worms move through soil, improving its permeability. They add their castings as free organic material.

We have soaker hoses placed in strategic locations so if rainfall isn’t enough, we can supplement. I like to deadhead the bushes every few days. It makes them look neater when the spent flowers are removed and it also means that I am among the bushes and can see their condition. If any look dry (I poke my finger into the soil to determine if any bush needs a deep drink), I can correct immediately.

Unfortunately, this is also the time of year when blackspot can cause a lot of damage to leaves. Many roses are sold that do not have good blackspot resistance (this is a fungus that thrives in heat and humidity). A particularly weak variety can lose most, if not all of its leaves if not treated. Because I trial roses for breeders, I do have rose bushes that have been hit very hard by blackspot. Some breeders ask that I do nothing to them but observe how they withstand this region’s heat and humidity. So, alas, I have a few bare-caned test roses that probably will never make it to the marketplace because they won’t pass the test for disease resistance.

For those roses that I can spray, I do so weekly. Not wanting to destroy beneficial insects like native bees, I use only non-toxic material such as Neem oil. It’s benign but will destroy a lot of blackspot spores. It must be used weekly, but it only takes me about 20 minutes to spray close to 100 rose bushes. I consider that a good investment of time to protect the rose bushes that I enjoy so much. There are several that have such great blackspot resistance that they don’t require any spraying with fungicide. Home Run, Knock Out and Yellow Submarine fit this category in my garden.

One thing that is not recommended in summer is fertilizer. Roses, like humans, lag in the heat and don’t need jolts of chemicals that ask them to grow. They will do so on their own and some varieties will flower throughout the summer. I have numerous bushes at Rosehaven that continue to provide colorful flowers now. Some of the best are Home Run, Double Red Knockout, Hot Cocoa, Yellow Submarine and Pretty Lady. These continue to be top garden performers, with additional color coming from Teasing Georgia, a David Austin English rose with lovely fragrance and strong, butter yellow flowers. I have a brand new climbing rose, Candy Land, that is thriving in a hot spot with reflected heat. Very good disease resistance and nice flowering even in this heat make this an especially nice climbing rose for this region.

I used organic fertilizer in spring, and there’s enough in the soil now for the roses to absorb. In mid-September, when temperatures are supposed to decline, I’ll fertilize again with more organics. This way the plants get what they need, on their timetable, not mine. Avoid water-soluble fertilizers that promote instant growth. In the long run, this hurts the plants.

I don’t spend time trying to combat insect pests. I let nature’s hungry predatory bugs do that for me. There are few problems on the roses now and if there are some thrips, hungry wasps eat them anyway.

So my summer rose care program is simplified. Water, occasional spray, and then sit back in an easy chair and enjoy the sight and fragrance of the roses.

Karen Dardick writes a monthly rose column for The Democrat. She can be reached at kdard@cableone.net.