Do you know the pH around your roses? How do you know if the fertilizers you are applying around your roses are being taken up by the rose roots? Your rose roots absorb the most nutrients (N-P-K especially) when they are in water soluble form and the soil pH is between 6 to 7, with the sweet spot being 6.5. If your soil pH is out of this range than many of these important fertilizer elements will not be available or may even be toxic. For $6 our Clemson Extension Service can perform a soil test for you. The results will give you suggestions on correcting any nutrient deficiencies or avoiding over applying a particular element. Go to https://hgic.clemson.edu/ for more information on soil testing.
