Landscape Spotlight: Knock Out Rose

Garden roses seem to have it all: good looks, great scent, magnificent color and plenty in variety.  However, they also come along with the reputation of being disease prone, fussy, high maintenance and difficult to grow.  This assumption is true with certain varieties, for example, hybrid tea roses require regular tending, climbing roses need to be trained and others require regular pruning/grooming/fertilizing…etc.  For some gardeners, these hurdles were just too much to handle and roses were left to the professionals that had the time and expertise to keep them alive and looking beautiful.  I suppose buying a $25 bouquet is easier than spreading fertilizer and being pricked by thorns all hinged on hopes to see a few buds bloom in the backyard!

Over time, plant breeders took these homegrown difficulties into their own hands and started working on producing an easier-to-grow rose variety.  With much-welcomed anticipation, rose breeder William Radler introduced his Knock Out Rose creation in 2000.  Being extremely well-received, breeders and gardeners were thrilled that this new variety had all the classic attributes yet required less care!  Within its debut year, the community attention awarded this variety many accolades and it has been in high-demand ever since.

When the public started to incorporate this new refreshing rose variety into their landscapes, they were taking notice to its resistance to normal drought and disease and its extreme proclivity to produce repeat blooms!  It wasn’t too good to be true, the knock out roses were actually bearing a new wealth of flowers every 4-6 weeks from spring until the first real hard frost.  A growing season without threat of dreaded blackspot, powdery mildew, Japanese beetles and other plagues won this rose a spot back into the hearts and gardens of homeowners everywhere!

For those who have read this far and are intrigued and convinced that this landscape spotlight beauty is perfect for their property, let’s discuss the details to ensure a healthy environment for your new addition:

• Zone: This perennial is hardy in USDA zones 4-9! (Find your zone here)
• Soil: This plant prefers a slightly acidic and well-drained soil and benefits from a little compost mixed in if you have some available.
• Fertilizing: If reliable, consistent and abundant blooms are on your wish list, feel free to feed your plants a fertilizer specially blended for roses after each bloom cycle.  However, this step isn’t always necessary.
• Light: Plant this beauty in a place that received at least 5-6 hours of direct sunlight a day for optimum results.  However, this variety will still grow very well in areas of partial shade.
• Water: During the first growing season, be sure to give this plant one inch of water per week and always try to keep the soil evenly moist.

This cultivator can be found in several gorgeous colors including white, yellow and pink, perfect to suit any landscape and any home architecture.  Knock out roses are upright and compact growing, on average, 3-4’ tall and about 3’ wide, proving to be very versatile within the residential landscape and will surely stand out amongst the crowd.  This shrub makes an excellent choice for hedges, containers, borders, en masse as a focal point, or to line features and fences.  Quite honestly, there really isn’t a wrong application!

Pairing the roses with other perennials that have similar sun and soil growing requirements like daylilies and coneflowers will guarantee collective health and color variety!  Low-lying companion plantings like lambs ear, lavender, marigolds or petunias will offer complimenting color and diverse textures for visual interest for many years to come.

Serving the Poconos, Lehigh Valley through the Main Line of Philadelphia and western New Jersey, MasterPLAN Outdoor Living would love to help you uncover the full potential of your property!  Starting with highly detailed 3D landscape designs and installing complete backyard transformations, we are ready to discuss all options to custom-tailor your outdoor living spaces to fit your family and your lifestyle.  When you are ready to discover all that your outdoor living spaces could be, reach out to MasterPLAN; we would love to hear from you!