Purple roses can be difficult to procure, but they make a gorgeous and unusual touch in the garden if you can find them. For an inky deep purple hue, try to find cultivars like 'Midnight Blue Rose' or 'Ebb Tide'. For a light lilac or lavender hue, we recommend growing 'Blue Moon' or 'Intermezzo'. This article will walk you through a variety of growing and rearing methods for purple roses - from cuttings, from seed, and through cross-pollination. Start from step 1 below.
Steps
Method 1 of 4: Using the Cuttings
Step 1. Get a purple rose cutting from a florist
If you want to grow purple roses, the easiest way is to get a 'parent' and use that to grow new purple rose plants. The first step is to find a florist who can provide you with a fresh purple rose. Then, if you are very lucky, you may be able to root this rose and grow it as a viable plant.
Step 2. Cut the stem for freshness
It is best to plant a rose cutting when the rose has just been harvested. Since the rose cutting you took from the florist may not have been recently harvested, it is best to cut about the last four centimeters of the stem. This livens up the surface of the rose cut.
Always make the cut at a 45 degree angle, using a sharp clean blade such as garden shears (pruning scissors)
Step 3. Make a cut from an existing purple rose bush
Alternatively, if you know someone who grows purple roses, you can ask them to make a cut from their plant to grow your own purple rose bush.
To cut from an existing plant, take about 20 inches of healthy green growth in late summer or fall, cutting at a 45-degree angle
Step 4. Encourage the rose cutting to form roots
Once you have the fresh cut of the rose, remove the leaves and dip the end of the stem in a compost for rooting. Place 2/3 of the stem in a compost cuttings mix (or regular compost mixed with gravel).
Step 5. Keep the cutting moist and keep it out of direct sun
Under the right conditions, the cutting will take about a year to develop enough root growth to be replanted elsewhere.
Step 6. Plant more cuttings than you need
Not all cuttings will 'take root' (ie develop roots), so always plant more cuttings than you need. Gardeners can usually count on one-third to one-half of all planted cuttings to transform into viable plants.
Method 2 of 4: Grow Purple Roses from Seeds
Step 1. Realize that growing purple roses from seeds can be tricky
While it is possible to grow purple roses from seeds, it is a slow method of getting new rose plants. In addition, garden roses are not always fertile, even if they develop false fruits called rose hips.
- It is also possible to get very disappointing results when growing from seed, because the child may not match the father (meaning the new plant may not have purple flowers, even if the parent did).
- While this isn't the safest or quickest route to getting roses to take root, here are some tips if you want to try growing purple roses from seeds:
Step 2. Allow the existing rose bush to develop rose hips
After the growing season, avoid cutting the flower heads off your purple rose plant and allow the plant to develop rose hips. Once these sprout, wait about 4 months before harvesting them. At this stage, the seeds should be ripe for planting
Step 3. Prepare the seeds for sowing
Use a knife to cut the rose hips in half, then choose the seeds - tweezers are quite handy for this laborious task.
- Rinse the seeds in a cup of water to which a drop of bleach has been added, then soak the seeds overnight in a 3% peroxide solution.
- Finally, use a toothbrush to shake the seeds and remove possible residue from the rose hip that could cause them to rot later.
Step 4. Plant the purple rose seeds in moist compost
Once the seeds are ready, sprinkle them on top of the wet compost, wrap in a clear plastic bag and refrigerate for about 10 weeks.
Remember to sow more seeds than you need in case the resulting plants are disappointing in color, or fail to grow
Method 3 of 4: Using the Potato Method
Step 1. Gather the necessary materials
While it may seem impossible, new roses can be grown from potatoes. All you need is a potato, some compost for rooting, a small pot with compost for cuttings, and a fresh cutting from a purple rose plant.
Step 2. Prepare the rose cutting
Use a nice, clean blade to sever about 20 centimeters of a green rose bud. Remove all dead leaves and flowers.
Step 3. Insert the cutting into the potato
Dip the end of the cutting into a rooting compost, then insert into the potato.
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You may need to make a hole in the potato to avoid breaking or straining the rose stem when you stick it into the potato.
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Bury the potato in the pot with compost for cuttings, letting the stem stick out of the compost.
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Step 4. Take care of the cutting until roots develop
Keep the pot in light, out of direct sunlight until roots and new growth begin to develop.
Cover the plant with a clear bell, or cut off the top of a clear plastic bottle and place it on top of the plant to make a kind of mini greenhouse
Step 5. Do not allow the soil to dry out
Water the cutting just enough to keep the soil moist. It will take about a year to develop enough root growth to replant elsewhere.
Method 4 of 4: Hybridizing the Roses
Step 1. Realize that crossing roses is a difficult task
Trying to cross rose bushes to get a new variety is not for the faint of heart. This is something that is best left to nurseries who have enormous resources at their disposal, and can make many thousands of attempts over the years to get a new variety.
Step 2. Hybrid two "parent" plants
If you want to try to create a new purple rose variety, you will need to hybridize two 'parent' plants. This means taking pollen from a rose plant and applying it to the stigma of another plant in hopes that the two plants will hybridize together to create offspring ('hybrid') with some of the parents' favorite characteristics.
Step 3. Try to hybridize roses in late spring
Late spring is the time to hybridize roses. It should be done on a day when no rain is expected. Select two plants you want to try to hybridize.
Step 4. Learn how the cross-pollination process works
Remove the flower petals of the plant that will have to carry the seed of the new hybrid. Remove the anthers from the plant to prevent self-pollination.
- Using a brush, remove pollen from one parent and apply it to another's stigma.
- It is a good practice to label the flower you just pollinated with information about the plant it is hybridized with and the date, for future reference.
Step 5. Wait for the rose hips to develop and then plant the seeds
Wait for the rose hips to develop on your hybridized rose bush. After four months, collect the seeds and plant them, using the method described in point 2 above. If you are lucky, these seeds will develop into purple roses.
