What type of maintenance is required for knock-out rose bushes, if any?
Knock-out rose bushes require constant attention. Once a week you should check for aphids and spray with a mild dish-soap/water solution (1 teaspoon dish-soap to 1 quart of water in a sprayer) as a preventative. If you pick the flowers to show or put in vases, then trim properly. If you don’t, you should trim dead roses off to encourage branching and faster propogation next year. At the end of the season (Mid-fall), throw dead leaves and coffee grounds around the base as a mulch. Caution! If it is an early blooming rose then follow the above procedure. If it is a late blooming rose (mid-summer), then trim back every major branch down to about 12 inches long (IN THE FALL) and enjoy the show in late summer next year.
