Hi guys, this is my first time posting so please let me know if I'm posting in the wrong space. I was hoping for advice on starting with roses, mostly miniature roses. I live in an apartment but I really want to get into roses and since space is an issue, I wanted to try my hand at miniature roses. But I'm having a hard time finding miniature roses and I've done some research and the kinds I end up falling in love with, don't seem to exist at any of my local nurseries. I've never ordered plants online but is that a viable choice with roses? Any recommendations on nurseries or roses that I should look into? Any advice would be much appreciated!

Thanks guys!

You're in the right place, Walter. Welcome to the Rose Forum. Miniature roses are good plants to order on line, but we have to know where you live (at least the country) before we can recommend nurseries. Some of my favorite miniature roses have come from grocery stores, Trader Joe's in particular, but you may not have Trader Joe's in your location.

There are several very good online nurseries that offer miniature roses. For Love of Roses may have the biggest selection but there is also Burlington Roses too. I can't off the top of my head name some others but I'm sure others on here will chime in with many more.

Just a note of caution, "miniature" only applies to the size of the leaves and blooms and not necessarily to the size of the plant. There are some minis that can get quite large in warm climates with long growing seasons. There are even mini climbers that can grow to 8 to 12 feet tall!

Sorry about that! I'm in North Carolina, USA. I have a Trader Joe's close by but they only carry herbs and the odd succulent.

I didn't know that! I'll have to double check all the roses I look at. I hadn't realized that miniature may not be what I was thinking of. And thank you! I'll take a look at those nurseries now that I'm home from work.

Walter what you are asking is about roses that can be grown in containers in a terrace/balcony setting. Am I right? There's quite a variety of roses that are well behaved and stay really within bounds although they aren't miniatures. I garden in open ground and have a lot of room but still sometimes I'm searching for the "right" rose including container worthy roses. In the world of roses with thousands to choose from mail order is possibly the best way to find those that meet your requirements. Still visiting nurseries is a good way of getting acquainted to them.
The're plenty rose growers here that will chime in with alternatives. Choosing roses is a journey in itself...and can be part of the fun of later growing them.
Arturo

For Love of Roses is a good source of mini's. I grow a lot of his roses. One of the best for pot growing is Kristin. It stays in bounds and puts out dozens of blooms each bloom cycle. And it recycles very quickly.

I would recommend sending an email to Burling Leong ([email protected]). Burling worked for Ralph Moore, a legendary hybridizer of miniature roses. She took over his business after he passed away. She sends out lists of her miniature and regular roses from which you can order. One of her creations, Maroon Eight which you can find in the helpmefind.com website in the roses section is very popular.

I agree with Ken that For Love of Roses is also a great source.

Good luck!
Ann

Don't worry, Walter, if it's a climber they will say so in the description. Most of the nurseries will give a basic size and if they don't Help Me Find does. I have some minis that never get more than a foot tall and others that will go to 3 ft or more. In your zone 7 you will probably get some winter die back and that keeps them smaller too.

Walter,
I'm fairly new at this also. In the past I've bought little mini roses in the grocery store. They usually come with about 5-6 plants in one pot. I've made the mistake of thinking I could grow them indoors which causes them to look sickly after awhile and I end up throwing them away. Ugh!
Last fall I decided to repot another pot that I bought at the grocery store into an 18 inch medium size pot and left them outdoors all winter. This spring they started really growing and boy are they beautiful.

Half of my roses, big and small, are in pots. With a little patience and perseverance it's very rewarding to grow them.

Welcome Walter!

First of all, how big is your patio where you plan to grow roses? Do you have a water source out there or will you be needing to bring in a hose (I did it for years so ask me how) in order to water. Does your patio get full sun all day? Is it shaded?

I have grown roses in pots for about 25 years, so I have a bit of experience with it but my climate is very different from yours. I too second Burlington nursery for the place to go to for mail order mini roses. She is super nice and will talk with you about what would work for your garden.

I have Maroon Eight and I don't recommend this rose for a pot on a patio unless you have a big patio. In my climate, this rose is about 4--5 feet wide and about 3--4 feet tall. Great rose, but not a mini by any stretch of the imagination. I do grow mini roses, however. I have had great success with Ralph Moore's Sequoia Gold, Vineyard Song (aka, Bunch of Grapes) and Halo Sweetie. I also grow some of the smaller patio varieties but they can get big, again depending on where you grow them. I currently love Minnie Mouse which I also got from Burling. I also have Lavender Crystal and Diamond Anniversary. I have grown Sweet Chariot and consider Vineyard Song to be a much healthier rose than Sweet Chariot. Same with Diamond Anniversary. Not one of Ralph's better roses. I will see if I can post some pictures.

Halo Sweetie


Minnie Mouse


Sequoia Gold


Peppermint Parfait


Now, all this being said, I grow "non-mini" roses in pots as well. I have had good success with them but again, not knowing what your growing conditions are, it will make a difference. I tend to grow some of the "smaller" varieties of roses (they don't get that big). I currently have Sharifa Asma, Candice, a NOID (no ID) I grew from seed, Jubilee Celebration (which will I will probably move into the ground), but others would work as well. So, welcome to the forum! Glad to have you here!

SharonNWRoses said:Walter,
I'm fairly new at this also. In the past I've bought little mini roses in the grocery store. They usually come with about 5-6 plants in one pot. I've made the mistake of thinking I could grow them indoors which causes them to look sickly after awhile and I end up throwing them away. Ugh!
Last fall I decided to repot another pot that I bought at the grocery store into an 18 inch medium size pot and left them outdoors all winter. This spring they started really growing and boy are they beautiful.

Half of my roses, big and small, are in pots. With a little patience and perseverance it's very rewarding to grow them.

It's true that they don't like to live indoors, but the roses sold in grocery stores are also growing in a medium that's full of moisture-retentive polymer granules. This growing medium is necessary for their pre-sale health and appearance, of course, because grocery store personnel can't be expected to water the plants regularly, but it isn't the right medium for long-term growth. I've found that the grocery store roses grow best for me if they're repotted right away in regular potting soil after most of the earlier medium has been removed from the plant. I'm actually quite ruthless in shaking off the old medium or even dunking the roses in water to remove as much of it as possible.