Rose Sizing And Grading
Buying rose plants online is one of the easiest ways to buy healthy, ready-to-plant roses that are just right for your landscape. No matter what your local options may be, with Spring Hill Nurseries, you will always find premium high-quality roses, in a wide selection of varieties to choose from. However, shopping for roses online can be a bit confusing for a first-timer, as rose size and grading vary among nurseries.
Spring Hill Nurseries is proud to provide some of the world's finest roses, from renowned breeders, in both bare root and potted forms. Let's discuss the various sizes and ways in which our roses are shipped.
Rose Sizes
Our partners at Weeks Roses harvest over three million roses per year. Following harvesting, their processing staff inspects each rose plant, or grade, to be sold. Any roses that do not meet their stringent quality criteria are discarded. Weeks' grading system supports a practice of total transparency and fairness to our customers. Spring Hill only provides our customers with the two highest grades assigned to roses, the #1 and #1.5 grades.
Grade #1
Premium bush roses and tree roses are assigned a Grade #1. These are the highest-quality plants, ready to grow and have an exceptional season in their first year. Each Grade #1 rose has an average of three "flower-ready" canes that will grow in the first season.
Grade #1.5
Grade #1.5 roses are a smaller classification from grade #1, but still selected with a high degree of quality. Typically marketed at a lower price point, this grade allows Spring Hill to offer our customers a great value for larger landscape applications. Once planted, a grade #1.5 rose will quickly reach the full potential of the variety selected.
Jumbo Roses
Our Jumbo Bare Root roses are large, robust, and ready to provide an incredible number of flowers the very first year in your landscape. These field-grown roses are up to three times the size of a traditional Grade #1 rose, with a whopping six to nine flower-ready canes. These plants are visibly larger, and a dream for gardeners who do not want to wait by providing "instant landscape" pop and flower power. Our Jumbo Bare Root roses are professionally trimmed to optimize the first flush of growth, manifesting in the very best flower development. In the first year, you could see up to fifty percent more flowers on a Jumbo Bare Root rose from Spring Hill, compared to a standard grade #1 rose.
Types of Roots
What's an "ownroot" rose, and how does it compare to a grafted rose? These terms are used when talking about how your rose is produced and how Weeks ensures your success as a budding rosarian. Let's look at the different types of rose roots available.
Budded Roses
Budded roses, or grafted roses, are fused to rootstock that is not their own. While the process is heavy on science, it's not quite the lab experiment you may think. A scion, or bud, of one rose is attached to the bark of the chosen rootstock, and the two quickly grow together. After the grafting takes place, the roses are well-attached into a single plant. There's no chance that the roots will fall off, and grafted roses are not more susceptible to root or cane loss than non-grafted roses.
So, why go to the trouble of grafting? Some roses are grown for their beauty or shape but don't have the vigor necessary to survive in some North American climates, or require specialized soil to take root. Weeks mostly uses Dr. Huey rootstock, a stock famous for its ability to thrive in numerous landscapes in a variety of climate regions in North America. These roots allow the rose to perform in a wide range of temperatures, moisture levels and soil conditions.
BUDDED ROOT ROSE
OWN ROOT ROSE
Ownroot Roses
Ownroot roses are simply non-grafted roses. They are grown on their own roots and are hardy enough to withstand cold temperatures and tough soil conditions. Many ownroot roses perform especially well in Northern locations, where harsh winters can be a concern for other rose types. In these situations where unusually hard freezes cause dieback, ownroot roses recover more readily.
Fortuniana Root Roses
Spring Hill is excited to offer a new grafted rose option to our warm-zone customers, the Fortuniana rootstock. Fortuniana rootstock is known for exceptional performance in southern gardens, zones 7 and up, with an ability to withstand hot temperatures and thrive in sandy soil. Most roses grafted to Fortuniana stock produce extra large flowers as they mature and provides resistance to root knot nematode and crown gall.
Potted Roses
While bare root roses have the advantage of simple shipping, potted roses make the most sense for some gardeners. Potted roses are actively growing, transplant ready and may feel like a more traditional planting experience. Just place them at the same depth as they were in the pot. Now in huge 3 gallon sizes!
Make this season your landscape's best yet.
Roses are a wonderful investment in the landscape, and, with the right care, they can last for decades. No matter what size, style, or location you're seeking, we offer you the finest rose varieties available today that are guaranteed to thrive in your landscape.
Have more questions? Email Customer Service, call or chat! We're happy to help!