Double Knockout Roses for Sale - Buying & Growing Guide

Double Knockout Roses – Buying & Growing Guide

by Mary Van Keuren | Gardener (30+ Years Experience) – last update on December 2, 2021

Knock Out roses revolutionized the world of rose growing, with their abundance of blooms and disease resistance. Take a look at our Double Knock Out varieties — they are sure to enhance your landscape and provide colorful interest, no matter what your garden plan looks like.

How to Plant Double Knock Out Roses

Site your plant where it will get 6-8 hours of sun. Dig a hole that’s as deep as the plant’s root ball and twice as wide. Loosen the soil in the bottom of the hole so that it’s aerated, adding a few handfuls of compost while doing so.

Unpot your Double Knock Out rose and tease out any roots that are encircling the root ball so they don’t choke the plant. Place the plant in the hole with the base of the bush level with the soil. Fill in around the roots with soil that is loose, crumbling any that is sticking together in a lump. Water thoroughly. Mulch around the plant with an organic mulch like bark chips, keeping the mulch away from the trunk.

How to Grow Double Knock Out Roses

• When. Plant your Double Knock Out rose in spring after the last frost, or in fall, at least six weeks before your average first frost.
• Where. Although Double Knock Out roses thrive in full sun, they can also grow in partial shade, with 3-4 hours of sun a day.
• How. When you first plant your Double Knock Out rose, make sure you loosen the soil around the plant so that the roots can stretch out and grow. Water every few days when the plant is young. Once established, it will only need watering during times of drought.

How to Care for Double Knock Out Roses

• Watering. Double Knock Out roses are more drought-resistant than other roses. Once established, they should not need much supplemental watering, unless you see the plants start to droop during times of little rain.
• Nutrients. Knock Out roses don’t require fertilizer, but if you want to give them a boost, use a balanced fertilizer and apply it after the first wave of flowering in summer.
• Pruning. You can prune your roses once a year, in early spring, to maintain their height. If you cut it back to 12 inches, expect your bush to triple in size to three feet during the growing season. You may also prune out broken or diseased branches whenever you see them.
• Pollination. Knock Out roses are hybrids, and thus are not propagated through pollen and flower nectar. Because of this, they are not bee magnets like some other roses.