# Southern or Georgia Gardeners: Help With A Rosebush Question, Please? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 11, 2003, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/southern-or-georgia-gardeners-help-with-a-rosebush-question-please/206816 "2003-10-11T07:26:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quasimodem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2003, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/southern-or-georgia-gardeners-help-with-a-rosebush-question-please/206816/1 "2003-10-11T07:26:53Z")
I would like to plant a purple rose bush in the front of my apartment, but I’m getting a couple of differing opinions about when to plant: One site tells me February and another says Fall, which is now. Also the soil in front of my place has clay mixed in, and the only other flowers I have ever planted there were tulips which did fine, and they do re-grow. I’m just confused about the months. February here is Winter, and our first frost this Fall can’t be far off. Why not Spring? Appreciate Y’all’s help. Q ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2003, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/southern-or-georgia-gardeners-help-with-a-rosebush-question-please/206816/2 "2003-10-11T07:43:37Z")
I don’t know about rosebushes, persay, but I heard something on the radio that may be relevant. Apparently, the “Fall” theory is…plants usually do their best, or whatever, in Spring, right? Well, if you go ahead and plant them now, they’ll have that much more time to take root, so they’ll be all ready to rock in Spring. I’m not vouching for it, it’s just what I heard on the radio. ---
**Author:** ![Quasimodem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2003, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/southern-or-georgia-gardeners-help-with-a-rosebush-question-please/206816/3 "2003-10-11T07:54:52Z")
Thanks **Yujin**. You’re awake too, huh? 😃 Well, if that’s the case, I’d better get on the ball and get that bush into the ground then. See ya’ Dood Q ---
**Author:** ![Quasimodem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2003, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/southern-or-georgia-gardeners-help-with-a-rosebush-question-please/206816/4 "2003-10-11T09:17:17Z")
Hmmmm. I might need to rephrase that last post a bit: The **rose** bush. 😃 Q ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2003, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/southern-or-georgia-gardeners-help-with-a-rosebush-question-please/206816/5 "2003-10-12T04:13:57Z")
For shrubs, trees, raspberries, etc., they are best transplanted after they have gone dormant _in the fall_. But note the keyword “dormant”. If you plant a non-dormant rose bush with a month 2 go before the first killing frost, it will send out new growth that will be killed by the frost since it is so tender. Being dormant doesn’t mean the roots are dormant, if the ground temp permits, it will send out new roots which is good. Since that is the absolute best time to plant, this means that the local “nurseries” try to sell them in the Spring!?! (It’s just like how you’re not supposed to transplant blooming annuals, but that’s how they are sold nowadays. American business caving into the American consumer rather than educating them.) ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2003, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/southern-or-georgia-gardeners-help-with-a-rosebush-question-please/206816/6 "2003-10-12T04:50:19Z")
Yea, I was up, stalking the night in search of gardening commercials…😃