How to grow Culinary Rose in Australia

Where to plant

Plant roses in full sun in deep, rich, well-drained soil with plenty of compost, in a spot with good air flow, which helps keep leaf diseases down. They grow in all our southern regions and suit Hobart's cool summers especially well. In humid subtropical and tropical gardens they grow, but black spot is harder to manage without sprays; choose tough, disease-resistant types such as rugosa.

For eating, the plant must never be sprayed with pesticides or fungicides or treated with systemic insecticides, and it should be well away from roads and treated lawns.

• Plant bare root roses in winter, from about May to August.
• Potted roses can be planted most of the year in mild areas, avoiding the hottest summer weeks.
• Hobart: excellent petals and hips; plant bare root from June to August.

Choosing a variety

• Rugosa rose (Rosa rugosa) is tough, disease resistant and very fragrant, and bears large red hips.
• Damask roses are the classic perfume and rosewater roses, with intensely scented petals.
• Any strongly scented, old-fashioned garden rose can be used; flavour follows fragrance, so smell before you choose.
• Never use roses from a florist or a supermarket bunch. They are usually sprayed while growing and treated after harvest to last longer in the vase.

How to plant

1. Soak bare root roses in a bucket of water for about an hour before planting so the roots do not dry out.
2. Dig a hole wider than the roots, make a mound of soil in the bottom, and spread the roots over it.
3. Keep the graft union just above the soil, backfill, firm and water in well.
4. Mulch with a straw-based mulch about 7 cm thick, keeping it off the stems.

Watering and feeding

Water deeply and less often in warm weather, at the base of the plant and not over the leaves, which encourages fungal disease.

Roses are heavy feeders. After winter pruning, top dress with 2 to 5 cm of well-rotted manure or compost, and in spring and summer feed repeat-flowering roses about monthly with a balanced organic fertiliser. Use only organic fertilisers and composts on culinary roses.

Pruning and care through the year

• Prune in winter while plants are dormant. For bush roses, a simple rule is to reduce the height by about half and remove about half the canes at the base, cutting just above outward-facing buds. Rugosa roses need only light pruning to remove old and dead stems.
• Rake up and remove fallen leaves, which carry black spot spores.
• Pick off leaves with black spot early, and grow disease-resistant varieties, as you should not use sprays on culinary roses.
• If you want hips, stop deadheading in late summer and let the last flowers set fruit.

Harvesting

Pick petals from freshly opened flowers in the morning once the dew has dried. Gently shake out insects, and snip off the pale base of each petal, which can taste bitter. Use them fresh, or dry them on paper out of the sun and store them in an airtight jar.

Pick hips in autumn when they are fully coloured and slightly soft. Before using them, cut them in half and scrape out the seeds and the fine hairs around them, which irritate skin and the digestive tract. Wear gloves, and rinse the hips well in a sieve.

Growing in pots

Compact roses grow well in a pot at least 40 cm wide and deep with a quality potting mix. Water regularly, feed through the warm months with organic fertiliser, and repot or refresh the mix every couple of years.

Using it

• Use petals in syrups, jams, jellies, teas, rosewater, sugars, salads and desserts.
• Use cleaned hips for jelly, syrup, tea and sauces. They are a good source of vitamin C.
• Only eat roses you have grown yourself without any sprays, and start with small amounts.