newbie question

Is the white rose a winter flower? I have a rose bush that blooms white roses. But it hasent bloomed all summer and I dont know why. When do white roses usually bloom?

I'm not sure about your growing zone, but it helps to know what kind of rose you have, example , climbing, hybrid tea, rugosa. Oooops , sorry, and I forgot to add, that things like, is it planted in the sun? How old is it? Also there are some great rose folks from texas on the rose forum that could help you, I am sure.

This message was edited Sep 25, 2007 2:59 PM

There are everblooming roses, and those that have a 'season'. The
non blooming status could be related to several factors. If it is
an everbloomer, they like to be fed rose food on a regular basis.
I have a spring bloomer, that shows all it's blooms over a 2-3
month period, then 'rests' the rest of the year with monthly food, during
which time it grows more foliage.
Roses like a deep watering (an inch or so) once a week. Most roses
need to be pruned in the fall. Work the soil around it gently, to 3-4 in
deep. Sprinkle on some rose food and work that in. Prune back
branches 1/3 of their length, and wait for spring. There is an art to
pruning roses, which I am still learning, but sometimes pruning back
with your best effort will help it put on bloom in the spring. I am not
familiar with winter blooming roses, perhaps your's is just waiting for
some TLC and the right season.

I don't think there are winter blooming roses, some will bloom in spring or early summer, some will bloom on and off all season, but there aren't any that will wait for winter to bloom (even in warmer climates, I think they all go dormant for the winter). Closest thing I've seen to winter bloom was some at my old house would start blooming in Feb/March, which is really spring here not winter.

It sounds like it's bloomed for you in previous years? If so, I'd look at what was different this year in terms of what you did (fertilizing, watering, pruning etc) and what Mother Nature did (drought, floods, etc), the answer to why it hasn't bloomed this year is probably one or a combination of those things that were different this year.

If it is a Lenten rose it blooms late winter and early spring. Go to Guides and Information at the top of this page. Then go to plant files and type in Lenten rose to see if that is what you have.

Thanks for your help so far everyone! The blooms on my plant do not look like those of a Lenten rose. The closest I could come to what the blooms look like were the pictures of the Hybrid tea rose "peace" and the Hybrid musk rose "penelope" it looks more like the peace rose

Roses are hungry feeders and benefit from a good load of well rotted animal manure placed into the planting hole, at planting, you also need to make sure that you have spread the roots out as in the pot it grew in, it would be either just potted up from bare rooted stage, as the grower would have just lifted it from the trench he grows them in, or, the root ball has been growing round in circles inside the pot, they also need to be planted at the right depth, need plenty water and feeding at least spring and again end of summer, you dont say when the rose was planted, did it come with a label giving a name, sometimes roses will CONTINUE to flower into the winter months, BUT, they need to begin flowering in either spring or summer, you need to look over you rose to check that no insects are eating the tiny rose flower buds as they form, if I were you, I would be searching all the tips earlier folk's have sent to you, if all else fails, dig the shrub up, check the root system for health, move it to a sunny area and add feed/manure to the new site so it gets all the nourishment it requires to be able to form flowers, Roses are not known for lack of flowers, maybe not too good flowers, but not NO flowering at all. if you recently bought the plant, get back to the people who sold it to you and ask them for either a replacement or what the problem is explaining the site, position, soil type etc, maybe your soil is just wrong and lacks nutrients for roses, but you should have had flowers by now, even on a new rose. Hope this helps you get some ideas what to look out for and good luck, I hope with the right conditions, you can enjoy the blooms for years to come. WeeNel.