I recently dug up a rosebush and put it in a bucket of water for future transplanting. How long should I have it in the water and or is this a good method of moving a plant at a later time?

I've only moved one rose bush and replanted it immediately. I believe you can leave your rose roots in the water for about 24 hours, not sure if it can be longer before it would start to die. Maybe do a google search if no one else comes in to give advice on this. If it were my rose, I'd plant it right away. Also, when you replant a rose after moving it the small feeder roots are gone, so, it has a hard time getting water. When I replanted my rose I watered it every other day for 3 weeks and it thrived in it's new home. Good luck.

How future is future!? You can leave it there for A couple of days. I know 1 person who keeps it there for weeks but she changes the water and puts light fertilizer in it when she gets bare roots in the spring. However I think that's something for a more experienced rose grower to try. I personally would plant it in a pot, even just a 5 gallon bucket with holes in the bottom and sides And water it well every day. You can keep it shaded. I've kept them that way all winter for spring planting but have brought them into my garage to keep them from totally freezing.

Actually, putting it in a 5 gallon bucket with cut out holes and soil is a good idea. Myself, I would not put a grown rose that has been taken out of it's planted spot and not replant it as soon as possible. But, the bucket will work because it will be planted. I should have thought of that.....

P.S. I'm not the most experienced person in here....maybe the rose would be fine in the water for longer than I said. I truly don't know how long before the rose would start to suffer and I hope someone who is more experienced in here replies to this so I can find out, too.

That likely depends upon your climate. In Southern California, I was given a test rose by a friend who worked for a large, well-known garden center. They received it and it was put in a bucket of water where it remained for over a year. It grew and flowered and continued doing both after I planted it. The water was full of green algae, mosquito larvae and TADPOLES. I doubt it would have been successful where winter requires real winter protection, but this bush had a great climate and the roots were always kept under water. You probably run into more issues with rot if the actual canes are kept under water too long, but keeping the roots (under the bud union) in water is pretty much like growing it using hydroponics. Any dead bugs in the water probably feed them.

Thanks everyone for your concern with this Rose issue. I'll just put it back in the soil keep it well watered in a different area and snapback some of the longer stems and see what happens so thank you so much for all your suggestions. It's so great to be able to have a website like natural garden I have used it many many times over the past many years and found it most helpful.

TADPOLES??? Good Lord.

Yes ma'am, TADPOLES. The rose had literally been kept in a bucket of water for over a year. It was where most of their work occurred behind the scenes and it was apparently an easy task to simply add more water to the bucket when it appeared low. Since it was outdoors and received sufficient sun, it grew and flowered IN a bucket of water. It actually was happier in that water than it was in the ancient, collapsing sea floor dirt of the hill we lived on. The rose was Eyeconic Lemonade.

I don't know which blows my mind more....the tadpoles or the rose living in a bucket of water for more than a year. I had to move Felicia because there were too many tree roots where she was planted and she wasn't doing well. I had it all planned and the hole dug and amended...etc., and it was planted as soon as it was taken from it's old home. I would think the rose wouldn't have any nutrients living in a bucket of water and how it survived amazes me.

Wally2007 said: Thanks everyone for your concern with this Rose issue. I'll just put it back in the soil keep it well watered in a different area and snapback some of the longer stems and see what happens so thank you so much for all your suggestions. It's so great to be able to have a website like natural garden I have used it many many times over the past many years and found it most helpful.

You're welcome, Wally, and welcome to the Rose Forum.

@LittleAnnie it was fortunate to live in Newport Beach, CA where it received the perfect climate and conditions to survive. Roses actually don't need a ton of "fertilizer". They will likely flower and perhaps grow more but they don't need them to "live" as long as they receive the thresholds of light, temperature and water. Light and water encourage foliage growth and once the plant has leaves, it begins feeding itself. As long as it keeps getting sufficient light, water and temperature, it keeps feeding itself. It may not flower nor grow AS much as it might with "feeding", but it will live and probably do rather well.

Several years ago, my cat died in January and I had to bury him and it was snowing ....

I knew I had to bury him quite deeply because of the predators we have up here.
Since I garden in rock, I went out and dug up a miniature rose and tossed it in a bucket of water. I knew where a rose was already planted, the soil would be easier to dig in than if I started a new hole. I didn't care if the water in the bucket froze or if the rose died. All I was thinking about was my cat.

At that time, winter night temps were usually in the low 20s to mid-teens so I really did think the water in the bucket would freeze, but it didn't. The rose lived in that bucket for at least four months.

That spring the rose was still alive so I re-planted it in another part of the garden as soon as I could work the soil.

Since the rose was an own root rose, the rose where I had buried Dat Cat came back, so now I have two of that variety. Surprise, surprise.

I had read years ago that Ralph Moore had said, "If there is a way for a rose to survive, the rose will find it."

Smiles,
Lyn

roseseek said: @LittleAnnie it was fortunate to live in Newport Beach, CA where it received the perfect climate and conditions to survive. Roses actually don't need a ton of "fertilizer". They will likely flower and perhaps grow more but they don't need them to "live" as long as they receive the thresholds of light, temperature and water. Light and water encourage foliage growth and once the plant has leaves, it begins feeding itself. As long as it keeps getting sufficient light, water and temperature, it keeps feeding itself. It may not flower nor grow AS much as it might with "feeding", but it will live and probably do rather well.

I love how much I learn in here and it makes me realize how much I don't know about plants. Thanks, Roseseek.

Lyn, your story is amazing, especially, since it got so cold in the winter and it didn't kill the rose. Roses really are tough plants. Though, sad about your cat, I enjoyed your post.

LittleAnnie said: Lyn, your story is amazing, especially, since it got so cold in the winter and it didn't kill the rose. Roses really are tough plants. Though, sad about your cat, I enjoyed your post.

Patricia,

I, too, don't have any formal horticultural training, but I was lucky to have Roseseek and my mentor from the beginning of my rose journey when I lived in San Diego. I am certain that he had forgotten more about roses even back then than I will ever know.

When I moved to the mountains with more climate challenges and lousy soil, I drove him crazy with all of my questions. He also gave me reading assignments ... some of which were very much over my head.

In time, I learned that I will always have questions.

Yes, roses are tough, but not all of them. Some are prima donnas and need a lot of TLC, others have inherited what Roseseek calls a "death gene" and altho' they produce beautiful blooms they need extra TLC to survive. I like growing roses that are workhorses because they survive my mistakes.

Smiles,
Lyn

In late November 2001, I had a burst appendix, so was in the hospital for 4 days. When I was in the hospital, my Pickering order was delivered, so I told my DH to put the box in the garage. When I got home, I busted the bare roots out and plunked them in a large container of water in the shade. (Which about did me in, since I was in very rough shape still... off work for 2 weeks). Those bare roots sat in the water for 3-4 weeks before I was able to get them potted into 5 gallon pots. They were still in perfect shape and did great. I always chuckle when folks say "don't soak your bare roots for longer than 24 hours". Over the years since, I've soaked bare roots for a week or two when time constraints occurred with no problem. My ideal goal with them is 2 days of soaking.

Lyn, I want to know enough to take good care of my roses and have no desire to know 'everything' about them. But, I started planting roses 6 years ago and as problems came up with them so did questions. I consider this forum to be a wealth of information for those questions and then some as subjects arise that I never thought of and those questions are answered. Not to get gooey, but, I actually have warm feelings for some of the people in here who jump right in, often with long posts to help someone out.
My problems have been from not knowing my climate well enough to choose roses that can survive it without too much interference. I'm in zone 6A and bought roses for that zone thinking they would not need winter protection, nor did I consider disease resistance to the main problems here...black spot. So, because of my lack of knowledge I have had problems I didn't expect. But, I learned what I needed to know to replace the roses who have been removed with better specimens. I learned most of it in here.
So, can you name some roses who are work horses and survive much better?
I'd like to thank everyone in here who has helped me over the years when I first came in as a newbie, green as can be.

Patricia ....
I agree 100% that you do not need to know what I know to grow good roses.

I just learned about roses in a different way than most people and what I share here may resonate with some members of the RF and bore other members.

I'll have to get back to you in a little bit about workhorse roses. I had to repair one of my deer fences this morning and I wasn't quite up to it. Of course, the dang deer didn't know that, so I had to make the repair or else they would have a party in the garden.

I am running on empty and my brain is a dull tool.

Please be patient with me ...

Smiles,
Lyn

RoseBlush1 said: Patricia ....
I agree 100% that you do not need to know what I know to grow good roses.

I just learned about roses in a different way than most people and what I share here may resonate with some members of the RF and bore other members.

I'll have to get back to you in a little bit about workhorse roses. I had to repair one of my deer fences this morning and I wasn't quite up to it. Of course, the dang deer didn't know that, so I had to make the repair or else they would have a party in the garden.

I am running on empty and my brain is a dull tool.

Please be patient with me ...

Smiles,
Lyn

Patiently waiting and I hope you slept well.