I'm thinking of getting my mom a rose bush for Mother's Day

[MissMillie]

I've read up on the care, and I'm sure my mom will too, but nothing tells me the best time to plant.

I live in north central Massachusetts. Is early-to-mid May a good time to plant a rose bush?

[Major Nikon]

1. The very best way to plant them is order them bare root

You do this in the winter and they ship them to you at the perfect time.

This time of year you generally find them either in bags or pots. It's better to plant them early in the spring, but rose bushes are pretty hardy and it's pretty hard to kill them.

[elleng]

10. I found bare root very difficult to get to thrive,

but bought 2 'young' bushes that are doing well, in southern MD. Planted mid/end June 2 years ago.

[Major Nikon]

11. I've planted dozens of them that way

The only place I've ever gotten them from is Jackson and Perkins although there's several bare root sources. They ship them to you at the optimum time for planting based on your zone. The best thing about doing them that way is they tend to thrive about a year earlier than planting from pots. For hybrid tea roses, I was getting decent blooms the first year and by the 2nd they were fully mature.

June seems a bit late for bare root roses for that zone.
http://www.jacksonandperkins.com/jp-zone-map/a/528/

[Arkansas Granny]

2. I don't know much about roses, but the garden centers in our area

have rose bushes in pots this time of the year. I would think that would be the way to go for Mother's Day. Many times, the plants are already in full bloom so it would be instant gratification.

[mainer]

3. May is a fine time to plant. Be sure plants are cold-hardy

Central MA is about a Zone 5, so definitely no tender tea roses.

If you can get some David Austen English roses, those are lovely and have wonderful scents. And they're pretty hardy.

[sarge43]

4. Rugosas are another good choice n/t

[mainer]

6. I love rugosas -- have many on my property

easy to grow, sweet smelling, great big rose hips, but sadly a short bloom period.

I also love all the old-fashioneds, from Gallicas to centifolias. But also short bloom periods.

I think Austins produce blooms just a little bit longer.

[sarge43]

7. Love the old fashioneds, too. Have a couple of Gallicas

A little too cold here for the Austins

Given the Japanese Beetles that infest us mid summer, a one and done bloom period is an acceptable compromise.

I think rugies could grow on the moon.

[Grey]

9. For a longer bloom time be sure

to dead-head often. If you pick off the roses as the bloom dies and can't make seed (rose hips) they will keep trying. The smaller and more crinkled the leaves the closer to "wild" the plant is and more hardy. May is a lovely time for roses.

[greymouse]

18. I have always found David Austins to have no fragrance whatsoever.

[elleng]

22. Very little fragrance, I agree,

but hardy and long-producing. Mine has buds now (in southern MD,) and last bloomed in September/October (I think.)

[femmocrat]

5. That is a lovely idea.

Mid-may is perfect for planting. I have had good results with Knock-out roses.

[trof]

8. Excellent choice. Miz t has a rose garden...

entirely stocked by plants I and/or our daughter have given her for birthdays, Mothers' Day, etc.
She loves it.

[Major Nikon]

12. Whatever you get, be sure to follow the planting instructions carefully

Some rose bushes are grafted onto wild rose root stock. If you bury the graft the rose that you want will die and the wild rose root stock will emerge.

Even if the rose bush isn't a graft, it's a good idea to have 2-3 inches of the root ball above the grade of the soil, then cover it with mulch.

[TexasBushwhacker]

19. Yup. Roses don't like wet feet n/t

[Sanity Claws]

13. Nice idea

I don't know the climate of North central Massachusetts but if it is damp, make sure that you get a variety that is mildew and mold resistant.
Generally May is a good time to plant. This was a fairly mild winter so the ground should not still be frozen.

[LiberalEsto]

14. Hansa is a lovely rugosa rose variety that does well in colder climates

It has gorgeous fragrant deep rose-red flowers.

My cousin in Estonia has a Hansa rose in her garden. That's way up in northeastern Europe.

I have one in my garden in Maryland too. It's tough, hardy and disease-resistant.

[sarge43]

17. Two of my rugies

Therese Bugnet - pink with delicate scent. Covered with flowers in the early summer. Mine is about 6 feet tall now and the queen of the herb garden.

Blanc Double de Coubert - double white flowers with a spicy scent.

Rugies are just about perfect: Tough as bowling balls, lovely eye and nose candy, hate pampering, indifferent to soil conditions. I've seen them along the road sides, drenched in motor oil and road salt. They shrug it off and keep going. They just want sun, an occasional drink and a bit of fertilizer once in awhile.

[LiberalEsto]

20. I used to have a Therese Bugnet

Lovely fragrant flowers, but ours didn't bloom much. It also sent numerous shoots in all directions. I finally dug it out. Maybe something in that part of the yard disagreed with it.

I also used to have a white Sir Thomas Lipton, which grew over 6 feet tall. It was a heavy bloomer with intensely fragrant flowers. It succumbed to stem canker a few years ago.

[seaglass]

15. I usually got my mom plants for Mother's day - starting with strawberries when I was in elementary

school - funny 30 years later the plants were still there though I'm not sure they still produced edible strawberries.

I live in Northeastern Mass and don't plant anything outside until Memorial Day but that's just me being extra cautious and remembering that one snowstorm we got in May.

My husband plants in May all the time so you should be good.

[Rhiannon12866]

16. My mother also liked rose bushes, got her several over the years, probably for Mother's Day, too

I remember that she had to feed them and put them to bed for the winter, unlike many plants, but they generally did very well. I remember two favorites, in particular, that lasted for years. The pink one (Gene Boerner) was a floribunda, bloomed over and over all season, and Snow Fire was a tea rose (fewer blooms on the bush, but much larger flowers) and just spectacular!

Found this on YouTube!

Snow Fire: (the inside of each petal is red, while the outside is pure white!)

[underahedgerow]

21. May is fine! Just remember to dig the hole twice as wide and twice as deep, and add in some

decent soil if necessary. I always throw some egg shells, coffee grounds and banana peels into the hole as I'm planting.

And, if the soil is very dry, once the hole is dug and before you plonk the plant in (along with those banana peels, coffee grounds and egg shells) fill the hole completely with water and then put the rose bush in, then start filling it back in with soil.

This provides a very well moisturized and fertilized hole that should get things off to a good start.

I have about a dozen bushes right now, and keep adding more. My favorite for cutting is Mr. Lincoln, and my favorite for just absolute sheer rose perfection in scent and looks is Sweet Love. I also splurged on Centifolia this year. It only blooms in May and is used exclusively by the perfume houses, such as Chanel, for its incredible fragrance. (It takes 8000 lbs of roses to produce a kilogram of 'attar', the substance used for such perfumes.)

I may splurge further on some Damask roses... I can't get enough! I'll pay stupid money for them from my local vendor. I wonder if there are any support groups for rose addicts?

[LiberalEsto]

23. Mr. Lincoln is an incredibly beautiful and fragrant rose

I had one for many years but it died from a late frost and stem canker.
Tried to plant new ones but they didn't survive either. How I would love to have one growing and healthy.