You may think that growing roses from seed is difficult due to their delicate beauty, but roses are actually quite hardy. As long as you follow their specific growing needs and give them what they want, they'll give you what you want: gorgeous, lush blooms.
Mix your seeds with peat moss. Take this mixture and place it into a Ziploc plastic baggy. Place the baggy into the refrigerator and let it chill at 40 degrees F for the next month and a half (this is called stratification). Roses, for the most part, come from cold climates, and "know" to survive a cold winter before they start sprouting. By placing them in the refrigerator, you're tricking them into thinking that they're going through winter. This will help you get the strongest, most viable rose possible. After this six-week period ends, germination can start.
Fill a drainable, shallow tray with sand and vermiculite. Plant your seeds about 1/2 inch deep and water the soil, making sure not to overdo it. Keep the soil moist and at a temperature of about 60 degrees F. For the first month, store the tray in a dark place so that it receives no light. After that, use a grow bulb to give it 16 hours of light a day.
The germination process will last roughly three months, initially producing seedlings that will look bent, which is totally fine. They'll turn from white to green, straighten their leaves and then they'll be ready to be moved to potting soil. A perfect potting soil blend is one part Perlite (which helps prevent the soil from drying out), 1 part peat moss, and 1 part topsoil. Into this mixture add 1 part Dolomite lime, and an ounce of rose food like Miracle Gro.
Move the seedlings into plastic or metal pans with good drainage. Allow them to receive 16 hours of light a day via your grow bulb, and 70 degree temps. Water lightly, avoiding the leaves. Once you see real leaves starting to sprout up, you can move the plants to 4-inch pots or straight into the garden. If you're going to the garden, make sure the soil is fertilized. You should get blooms in about two months.
- pink roses by Elenathewise from Fotolia.com
