How to Grow a Small Rosebush

Provide your small rose bush full sunlight or at least six hours of direct sunlight every day. Prune overhanging branches of trees and shrubs surrounding the rose bush to increase the amount of sunlight the plant receives.

Provide the roses 1 inch of water every week during spring and summer. Use a soaker hose to irrigate the plant at soil level and prevent wetting the foliage. The roses thrive when the soil is evenly moist, not overly wet. Over-watering the soil promotes root rot.

Feed the rose bush a well-balanced fertilizer specifically formulated for roses. Follow label directions for dosage rates based on trunk diameter. Most mini or small rose bushes thrive with fertilizer applications every three weeks.

Cut spent blooms on the rose bush with sharp, sterilized pruning shears. Cut through the woody stem directly below the bloom at a 45-degree angle. Pruning dead blooms encourages multiple blooms and prolongs blooming period.

Inspect your small rose bush for pests such as aphids, spider mites and scale insects. These pests sap essential juices from the foliage and blooms, causing infested parts to appear wilted, turn yellow, droop or fall prematurely. Run a cloth soaked in rubbing alcohol over infestations, or dislodge the pests with a fast spray of water from a hose. Alternatively, use a commercial insecticide according to label directions to treat large infestations.

Spread 2 inches of organic mulch around the base of the plant before the first expected winter freeze in your area.