Garden Tips from Rick Shelton

Scripps Howard News Service

Soak well twice a week when it's hot, once a week in early spring, depending on the rain received.
Fertilize with granulated time release and 6-12-12 fertilizer about three weeks after first growth appears on new canes. Fertilize with time release again first of June and with 6-12-12 fertilizer in mid-July.
If starting with roses, try a shrub rose. They need less care than varieties like tree roses or hybrid teas.
Have a good pair of cutters to regularly deadhead roses for more bloom.
Spray roses once a week. Shelton uses a systemic fungicide. As an alternative, he sprays the roses with a tablespoon of baking soda dissolved in a gallon of water. When it's hot, he sprays in the early morning to avoid burn spots on the leaves. Be aware some varieties, such as some shrub roses and Japanese rugosas, don't like to be sprayed.
Lilies need good drainage but require little other special care. "You just have to know which ones are short and which ones are tall," Shelton says.

(Contact The Knoxville News Sentinel in Tennessee at www.knoxnews.com.)

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