Knock Out® roses have been a favorite selection of San Antonio gardeners, as well as new rose growers, for some time now. As a matter of fact, when someone is adamant about adding a rose to their landscape, but doesn’t know much caring for the oftentimes finicky shrubs, the Knock Out® rose is what we suggest.

Knock Outs® are extremely low maintenance compared to other types of roses. They are self-cleaning, so there is no need to deadhead if you choose not to. They have high disease and pest resistance, and it’s hard to do too much damage to them even if you are pretty zealous in your pruning.

These roses boasts so many blooms, and flower so often, that they rival all other flowering shrubs. They tend to have a very heavy flowering period, and then bloom sporadically until the next heavy flowering period.

Care for Knock Out® Roses

Roses generally reach average mature heights of about 4’ tall x 4’ wide. The recommendation to cut Knock Out® Roses back to about 12″ once a year in late winter/early spring will help ensure they don’t grow scraggly and overgrow their healthiest stature.

The pruning helps the shrubs develop a fuller, bushier appearance than if they aren’t pruned. Don’t worry, they are fast growers and will triple in size after pruning them by the end of the season. If you feel the need to trim up your roses throughout the growing season, just use the rule of thumb of not cutting back more than ⅓ at a time.

Give Knock Outs® a sunny location in your landscape (at least 6-8 hours of full sun), and you can include them in rows for a colorful hedge, in big pots for cheerful entryway plants, or mixed in with other shrubs and perennials and wherever you want a bold splash of color.

These roses perform well even without fertilizer, but if you want to give them an extra boost, follow these specific guidelines for fertilizing Knock Out® roses:

Netural soil pH is ideal and, like other roses, the soil should drain well and not allow for any standing water. They prefer deep, infrequent waterings as opposed to frequent, shallow waterings. It’s also advised to water the roots and dripline of your roses as opposed to overhead watering that can lead to issues with blackspot or other fungal problems. This is the same advice we give for all plants, to help avoid disease.

Knock Out® Varieties

They currently come in the colors: Knock Out (cherry red), Double Knock Out (cherry red), bright-pink, Rainbow (coral with yellow center), Blushing (pale pink), Sunny (pale yellow to cream), Easy Beezy (yellow), Orange Glow (orange with yellow and pink), Peachy (shell pink with yellow centers), Pink Knock Out (bright pink), Double Pink (bright pink), White, and Coral. The only current varieties of these roses that have a fragrance are the Sunny, Easy Breezy, and White Knock Out® roses; they have a light citrusy scent.

Is your interest peaked yet? We love highlighting a plant whose beauty, resilience, and ease of care we can 100% attest to. We currently have a great selection of many of these varieties as both of our locations, so come get you one…or two…or three….

~The Happy Gardener, Lisa Mulroy