Roses in December

                     If only roses can bloom in severe winter too, like peak winter in December; life would become such a pleasure for us to live in any corner of the world!

The 60 plus of our life period is the December in our journey on this earth.

A person full of bounce in this age is with a mind like a bunch of roses in full bloom

One of the ways I feel to be full of such bounce is to have a healthy hobby.

We can explore so many avenues. Even Mother Nature is a bounty.

Growing roses themselves I find is a very satisfying hobby. Even in a small house or an apartment, one can always have them in pots. The ecstasy of watching the roses from buds to bloom, as a result of our effort is comparable to the pleasure in watching ones own child growing and taking the first step.

If the whole process is automatic it would be again boring like a routine life. It’s the effort in growing a healthy plant that is most interesting.

There are some techniques one must know to grow healthy roses. It requires lot of caring too.

=roses require minimum 6 hours of daily sunshine. So out door plants should not be in shade and the pots have to be kept in a vantage position.

=Prune it with a sharp clipper for shape to leave the ends neat edged.

= Water it as much as the mud in the pot requires for getting soaked well.  The water should drain off but not stagnate in the earth to rot the roots.

=Weeds grown around it should be removed periodically, one could add mulch ( chopped pieces of tree barks) to fight weeds and conserve moisture.

=A mixture of garlic and ginger paste boiled and diluted in water or Neem oil available in shops is also good pest control.

Don’t fret about black spot, rust or powdery mildew on the leaves. This will take care of it.

=When a rose plant is established with its  roots   firm in the ground then it is drought resistant.

=The rose’s peak performance is by snapping off the spent blossom called beheading.

This means to cut the flower with its stem starting just above the joint from which it starts.

From the joint a new branch will start.

=To get one large rose to bloom;   in a bunch leave the biggest bud only and clip off the others.

=Snapping off extra leaves near the bud and leaving just three leaves helps to get larger roses.

=Rake the soil once in a week around the root without snapping off the roots.

=Remember while cutting the rose, cut the stem unto the joint.

Now enjoy the beauty of the rose you have grown, in a vase on you table.

For roses to last a little longer in vase indoor, add a teaspoon of sugar to water.

Feel the warmth of the complements from your friends

Once a large rose blooms, its scent will make you heady and young.

Similarly once you develop a hobby, one will feel young even at the age of sixty.