Every time you prune your roses they get new growth and this takes a lot of new nutrition. Feeding roses is very important if you want them to thrive and bloom in the summer. Roses are hungry plants and they require to be fed quite often. One of the things that help roses to thrive is mulch.
Although you can buy mulch it is much better if you make your own. It is simple really – dig a hole in your back yard and line it with plastic sheeting. Make sure that all biological waste from your kitchen goes in the hole – left over food, fruit, vegetables and so on. Once it is full cover the waste over with the plastic sheet and put a layer of soil on top of that. The waste will rot and in a few weeks you should have fresh mulch for your roses. The best way to mulch is to apply it to the base of every rose plant. When you are watering pull off the layer of mulch, water and then replace it. You should also give your roses fertilizer. There are different fertilizers so choose depending on your soil and the climate in your area.
You can give your roses a further boost by feeding them something like Miracle-Gro or any other slow-release foods that are available for roses. These contain all the nutrients needed by roses so your plants will be getting a balanced diet. These are water soluble and should be applied every 2 weeks or so. Make sure to stick to the instructions – too much and you burn your plants, too little and they don’t get enough nutrition.
Although many people don’t know it, it is possible to feed the soil to the point where it is too rich. You will know this is happening because your plants will become overly-lush. You can stop this by feeding the soil less. Do it once a month instead of once every 2 weeks. In case you are wondering why too much lush is bad, it is a haven for insects to lay eggs and multiply.