Floribunda roses are a popular plant in many gardens. Their hardy nature and beautiful blooms that are produced throughout the full growing season make them great plants to have in your garden. But how do you care for Floribunda roses and are they easy to keep? Read our guide to find out more.

When to plant Floribunda roses

The best time to plant your Floribunda Roses in the Autumn, between October and November, and in early spring. This is when the plant is dormant and will give it chance to establish itself before the growing season.

If you order a rose in the summer, you should remove the packing immediately and place it outside in a sunny spot. Make sure you water it well while it’s there and plant it as soon as you can.

When you order a rose in the winter, you should remove the packaging and make the soil is damp. You should store it in an unheated shed or greenhouse to protect it from frost and cold weather until the early spring, when it can be planted in either your garden or in a container.

Where’s the best place to plant a Floribunda rose?

Floribunda roses prefer to be planted in sunny spot and like to be sheltered from strong winds. Find a spot that receives at least six hours of direct sunlight per day.

If you plant them in the shade or surrounded by a large number of other plants, they will really struggle to thrive.

If your garden is naturally wet, make sure you use sand or course grind and organic matter when you’re planting them to improve the drainage. Roses do not like to be planted in wet ground.

How to plant Floribunda roses

Floribunda roses can be planted in the ground or in containers so follow the below advice for planting your roses.

In the ground

Around an hour before you plant your rose, make sure you water it thoroughly. Mix together soil, compost and rose food in a container.

The hole you dig to plant your rose should be around twice the width of the rose’s existing container. Remove the full plant from the container and tease out the roots gently. Make sure to prune any damaged roots before you place it into the hole and cover it with your soil mix.

In containers

Make sure the container you choose for your roses is deep enough to accommodate the long roots of the plant.

Follow the above planting steps but make sure you feed your rose with rose feed or fertiliser regularly during the summer.

Repotting Floribunda roses

If you want to keep your rose in a pot or container, Floribundas, like most other roses can have very long roots so make sure you choose a deep pot and take extra care not to damage the roots when repotting.

Once the plant has arrived, you can repot it into your own pot by filling the new pot with compost and carefully removing the plant from its original pot. Put the plant onto the top of the soil in the new pot and cover it up.

How to feed Floribunda roses

In spring, we recommend feeding your roses with a rose fertiliser and then again in June or July to give it the best chance of thriving in the summer season.

Watering Floribunda roses

Roses need quite a bit of water. However, Floribunda roses are slightly hardier than other roses so do not require as much care as other types.

When watering your Floribunda roses, we recommend that you only water the base of the plant and avoid getting any water on the leaves.

While your plant is becoming established (within the first year) you should water your Floribunda rose regularly. After this, it will only need watering in the spring and summer.

When the weather is slightly cooler, for example in spring, you should provide a deep watering once a week. However, during the summer when the weather is warmer, they may require water every day.

If your roses are planted in containers, their access to water will be more restricted than those planted in the ground and will need more water. We recommend sticking your finger into the first inch of topsoil and if it feels dry, you should water your rose.

How to prune Floribunda roses

Pruning your Floribunda roses properly will ensure that it comes back year after year and provides beautiful growth. If you leave it unpruned or unkept, it will very quickly start to look messy.

For the best results and growth in the summer, make sure you prune your Floribunda roses in February or March.

If your Floribunda rose has been planted for less than a year, you should cut the rose bush down to around 15cm from the ground to leave short stems. This is Hard Pruning and is never recommended for more established roses.

Once your roses are more established, you can prune them by using secateurs to trim your rose bush to half of its height. Remove any remaining brown dead wood from the rest of the plant.

Looking after Floribunda roses in the winter

In the UK, the winter weather does not tend to be harsh enough to harm Floribunda roses so may not require protection unless the weather is particularly bad.

If you live in a more exposed location (such as very far north) or extreme weather conditions are expected, make sure you provide some protection for your Floribunda roses to prevent them from dying.

You can use sacking, fleece or bin liners to protect the rose bushes from frost damage. This protection can then be removed once the winter frosts have passed.