When adding rose bushes and plants to your garden, think about how they grow, where they will thrive, how long they bloom, how resistant they are to disease, how long their stems are, and your own personal taste. You could plant a mass of rose bushes of the same color, mix different colors together, or put them in beds with other perennials.
Growing roses from cuttings is an easy and affordable way to add new plants to your garden. Taking cuttings from existing rose bushes is a smart propagation method that allows you to replicate prized plants or cultivars that may be hard to find or expensive to buy.
If you don’t have an established rose bush yet, you can purchase rose cuttings online and root them yourself. Buying rose bush cuttings for sale is a great option for beginners looking to gain experience and expand their rose collection on a budget.
In this article, I’ll cover where to find rose cuttings for sale, how to select high-quality cuttings, proper techniques for rooting and growing them on, and tips to end up with healthy, flourishing rose bushes.
Where to Buy Rose Bush Cuttings
Here are some of the top places to purchase rose cuttings for planting
Online Nurseries
Many mail order and online nurseries sell packs of unrooted rose cuttings for rooting at home. Reputable suppliers include:
- David Austin Roses
- Jackson & Perkins
- Eden Brothers
- Breck’s
- Nature Hills Nursery
- Spring Hill Nursery
Look for varieties labeled as own-root, cutting grown or Rosa multiflora understock. Avoid grafted plants.
Local Nurseries
Check with local nurseries and garden centers to see if they sell unrooted rose cuttings in late winter and early spring before new growth emerges,
Gardening Friends
Fellow gardening friends, clubs, or neighbors may be willing to share cuttings from their rose bushes. This allows you to grow identical plants for free.
Your Own Bushes
Taking your own cuttings from existing bushes on your property is the most direct way to replicate them. Identify healthy canes and make cuttings in early spring.
Online Marketplaces
Sites like Etsy have individual sellers offering various rose bush cuttings for sale. Review seller ratings and growing practices.
Wherever you source them, make sure cuttings are fresh, disease-free and arrive promptly for the best chance of successful rooting.
What to Look for When Buying Rose Cuttings
To end up with thriving rose bushes, start with high-quality cuttings:
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Healthy wood – Stems should be sturdy, not withered. Avoid any signs of mold, lesions or pests.
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Good size – Optimal cuttings are 4-6 inches long and at least 1/4 inch thick.
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Unflowered stems – Vegetative wood roots better than flowering stems. Avoid flowered shoots.
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Correct timing – Cuttings should be taken in early spring just as buds swell. Roots don’t develop well on dormant midwinter wood.
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Unrooted – Don’t buy pre-rooted plants or greenwood cuttings. Newly rooted roses don’t transplant well.
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Disease-free – Ensure supplier plants are cultivated with strict sanitary practices.
With high-quality rose cuttings and proper care, you can expect 80-90% of cuttings to successfully root.
How to Root Rose Bush Cuttings
Here is an overview of how to root and grow rose cuttings into mature bushes:
Take Cuttings
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Use sharp, sterilized pruners to take 4-6 inch cuttings in early spring with at least 2-3 nodes.
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Cut just below a node at a 45 degree angle.
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Dip cut ends in rooting hormone powder/gel to encourage root growth.
Stick in Media
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Stick cuttings 1-2 inches deep in sterile potting mix or a 50/50 peat/perlite blend.
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Gently firm media around stems and water well.
Provide Warmth & Humidity
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Place pots in a bright area out of direct sun.
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Cover with plastic to maintain very high (90%+) humidity.
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Bottom heat of 70-75 F speeds rooting.
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Mist cuttings daily but avoid soggy media.
Allow Roots to Develop
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First roots and leaves emerge in 4-8 weeks.
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Cuttings are ready to pot up in 10-12 weeks once a good root system is visible.
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Harden off before transplanting outside.
Grow On Young Rose Plants
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Pot up rooted cuttings into 4 inch pots using rose planting mix.
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Grow on indoors for 2-4 months before moving outside.
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Plant into garden in fall or the following spring after the last frost.
With the right care, your cuttings will establish themselves as easy-to-grow rose bushes for your garden.
Tips for Success Rooting Rose Cuttings
Follow these tips to ensure your cuttings root successfully:
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Take cuttings first thing in the morning for highest rooting hormone levels.
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Use a sharp, sterile blade for clean cuts that won’t crush stems.
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Cut just below a node so leaves can emerge.
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Dip cuts in rooting hormone to encourage root formation.
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Stick cuttings in moist, sterile media like perlite/peat mixes.
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Provide constant warmth around 70 F and very high humidity.
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Avoid direct hot sun which can burn tender cuttings.
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Monitor moisture levels and never let cuttings dry out.
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Be patient – rooting and establishment takes 10-16 weeks!
With care, the vast majority of your cuttings should take root and grow into healthy young bushes.
Best Rose Varieties for Cuttings
While most rose types can be propagated from cuttings, some varieties root faster and easier than others. Good choices for beginners include:
- Hybrid teas – ‘Mister Lincoln’, ‘Double Delight’
- Grandifloras – ‘Gold Medal’
- Floribundas – ‘Iceberg’, ‘Angel Face’
- Shrub roses – Knock Out®, Drift®
- Old garden roses – ‘Zéphirine Drouhin’, ‘Madame Hardy’
- Climbers – ‘New Dawn’, ‘Don Juan’
- Miniatures – ‘Cupcake’
- Landscape roses – Flower Carpet®
Avoid grafted roses, own-root varieties will clone truest. Mix in some hardy, tough landscape types with your more delicate hybrid teas.
Expand Your Rose Collection Affordably
Taking and rooting rose cuttings is a fun, easy way to add new variety and color to your garden for very little investment. Buying rose bush cuttings for sale online or locally allows you to grow rare finds or replace favorites at a fraction of the cost.
Armed with the right techniques, you can root over 80% of cuttings into mature, productive rose bushes. Be sure to start with high-quality cuttings taken at the right time of year and provide consistent warmth, humidity and care.
What rose varieties are you looking to add to your garden? Have you tried propagating roses from cuttings before? I’d love to hear about your experiences rooting roses in the comments!
Types of roses: The idea of rose gardening may conjure images of stately flowering hedges, twirling vines, or long stems in bouquets. However, roses are an incredibly diverse set of ornamentals. What type of rose should you plant? You’re limited only by your imagination and planting space.
Climbing Roses: Climbing roses add vertical interest to the garden and are great for covering walls, fences, or arches with their lush leaves and pretty flowers. The individual blooms of climbing roses can be exquisite, making them excellent cut flowers. You can get single or double climbing roses, and many of our favorites are crossbreeds between classic climbing roses and other, hardier flowers. Use climbing roses to create a beautiful, highly-textured backdrop for your other perennials.
Floribunda Roses: The name “floribunda” comes from a Latin phrase that means “many flowers.” These roses were created to produce high-yield plants with a classic shape. Floribunda roses are a cross between polylantha roses, a type of flower that blooms a lot and was first bred in the 1800s, and classic hybrid teas, which are loved for their beautiful shape and sweet scent. Floribunda roses never disappoint, combining amazing color varieties and that classic “rose” shape with a huge floral yield. Plant these in the cutting garden and prepare to be wowed.
Grandiflora Roses: These roses are usually taller and have bigger flowers than floribunda varieties. They were created by crossing hybrid teas and floribundas. These queenly roses have many blooms on each stem and cover the garden with stunning blooms in every color you can think of. Grandifloras often feature incredibly full forms, with layers upon layers of fragrant petals.
Groundcover roses: Why not fill in a blank spot in the garden with the scent and beauty of roses? Because that’s what their name means. Fill your landscape with these specialized varieties of low-growing roses. Landscape roses, or ground cover roses, are often armed with excellent disease resistance and reblooming properties.
Hybrid Tea Roses: In the 20th century, hybrid teas were thought to be the newest and toughest types. They became very popular very quickly because of how strong they were. But for gardeners today, they may very well be your grandmother’s roses—classic, beautiful flowers with tightly wrapped petals that bloom all season in huge, colorfast bursts. There are many reasons behind hybrid tea roses ongoing popularity. Grow these classic beauties, and youll quickly learn why these “new heirlooms” are beloved around the world.
Shrub Roses: Shrub roses, which are also called bush roses, are bushier plants that can be used to make a fence or separate your yard. English roses are a major subspecies, as are vigorous, huge-blooming Knock Out roses. Our Freedom Roses are ever-blooming varieties, sure to delight with velvety blooms and impressive height all season long.
Miniature Roses: Miniature roses are perfect for patio planting, or for installation in the landscape. Due to their wild, naturalized lineage, most miniatures are easier to take care of than their full-size counterparts, even though they look fragile. There aren’t many roses that are as good as these. You’ll love how pretty their blooms are and how well they resist disease.
Tree Roses: Tree roses are a beautiful way to add height and architectural interest, with elevated flowers. Tree roses are typically hybrid tea or floribunda roses grafted to a taller trunk to create dramatic height.
How to plant roses
You’ll need three things to plant roses: a good spot, a lot of digging, and the right soil amendments. Roses like at least six hours of sun each day, preferably morning sun. Because they dry out faster from the dew in the morning (wet roses can get sick), roses do best in the morning sun. They don’t like getting burned in the afternoon sun. So, your planting location should ideally accommodate your roses need for light, and fit their potential expanse. Roses need a lot of space between them so air can flow between them. This is because roses can get diseases from being wet. If you live somewhere very cold, you might want to plant your plants close to the foundation of a house or other building to keep them warm in the winter.
Test your soil to ensure that its at the optimum pH level, which falls into the 6. 5 to 7. 0 range. The soil should be just slightly acidic, soil that is too-acidic or too-alkaline will stunt your roses growth. If your soil is too alkaline, get a sulfur or aluminum sulfate mix to make it more acidic. If your soil is too acidic, add garden lime. If you want to, you can also dig up the soil and replace it with loam or another well-drained, suitable compost material. Remember also – roses dont like soggy, wet roots.
Roses may be shipped bareroot or in pots. You should dig a hole that is a little wider than the plant’s roots or root ball and about as deep. Most roses have good-sized roots even before they are shipped. If you have a bareroot rose, cut the canes to 4 to 6 inches long with a clean, sharp blade and cut off any broken roots. Soak the roots for 12 hours before planting. If the rose is in a pot, all you have to do is take it out and loosen the roots. Make a mound of soil in the middle of the hole before planting. Then, spread the roots of the rose down the sides of the mound, placing the plant on it. Setting the rose plant on a mound encourages the roots to grow straight down.