How to Care for the Black Magic Rose

Dig a hole in your garden where you want to place your black magic rose bush. Choose an area where water will drain well to the roots. Make the hole 4 inches larger than the bush's nursery container.

Take the rose bush out of the container, holding it upside down by the roots. Put the roots in the hole and cover them with 2 inches of compost. Replace the soil, pushing it completely around the roots.

Water the bush regularly, but do not let the soil get muddy. Add a fertilizer designed for rose bushes to the soil in the spring and midsummer to keep the bush healthy.

Clip off any brown spots you see along the leaves and stems of the plant, which are a sign of a fungal disease called blackspot. Cut off all infected areas with gardening shears to avoid further infection. Dispose of the clippings in the trash.

Trim the bush regularly for a healthy appearance, using sharp pruning shears. Clip off any canes on the black magic rose bush that are growing inward toward the plant or that are dead, weak or breaking. Leave six to eight healthy canes growing on the rose bush. In spring and summer, clip off any dead buds or new canes growing inward. Always cut at a 45-degree angle toward the ground.