Room Miniature

Room Miniature

Roses Bushes As Miniature Indoor Plants

We can use miniature rose bushes to grow as indoor plants so we can enjoy the beautiful blooms during the winter months. The miniature rose easily adapts to indoor life but will require more humidity and light than some other types of flowering indoor plants.  

These rose bushes are simply a smaller rendering of a full sized rose bush. The miniature rose bush can extend in size between 5 inches or smaller to around 4 feet tall. The size of their flowers can be anywhere from 1/2 to two inches across and they have a multitude of colors available. For rose bushes as miniature indoor plants you probably do not want one that will reach 4 feet tall. You will probably do best with a smaller version so it will fit in a container that is no more than 8 inches across.   

Miniature roses will require just as much sunlight as the regular size roses. They will need somewhere between six and 8 hours a day of sunlight so a west-facing or south-facing window will be better for them. They also will need a fair amount of heat but too much will dry them out in a quick hurry. If the temperature is too cold they have a tendency to go dormant so you want to keep the thermostat above 60 degrees F. The use of grow lights can be a useful garden accessory if you want your roses to repeat their blooming or if they are not able to receive enough sunlight during the day.

Generally speaking, indoor air is much drier than outdoor air especially in winter, so it is best to render surplus humidity around your rose bushes. This can be done by almost filling a container full with water, adding rocks to the water and placing the rose bushes on top of the rocks; this will create the moisture that the bushes need. You can also accomplish this by using a room humidifier. Rose bush leaves will turn yellow, shrink up, and drop off when the humidity is very low. These miniature indoor roses will require water more often than the garden planted roses mainly because the indoor containers will dry out quicker than the ground outside. They also need some good drainage to help flush away any salts, create breathing room for the roots and will prevent the roots from rotting.  

The potting mixture you can use for repotting your roses can be a commercial mix as long as it containes vermiculite and perlite. A fertilizer that contains high amounts of potassium or a rose bush fertilizer can be used on the miniature rose bushes. You will need to dilute or thin it out to one-quarter strength because you are using it for a container rose and not a garden grown rose bush. The high potassium will stimulate more blooms on your plant.  

Air circulation is an important part of indoor miniature rose care. If they do not have enough air circulating around them they could attract aphids and spider mites. Bad air circulation will also enable dust and dirt to collect on the leaves and smother the rose bush. A soft cloth can be used to remove the dust from the leaves. In regards to spider mites you need to wash the bushes well every few days, if it is a severe infestation you may need to strip all the leaves off the plant and cut the rose bush back by half. New growth will appear shortly afterwards.

About the Author

Barbara and her husband are a retired couple that enjoys the spent at home and also a little gardening work. They always want to learn more things for the garden and when they do want to share their ideas. This time they are working with a miniature rose bush indoors. Please visit the website Gardeners Garden Supplies for some interesting thoughts on gardening.

How much space do miniature bearded irises need?

The ones I have are miniature talls (between 16 in. to 25 in., staying on the short side at 18 in., but I haven't seen them full-grown yet; this is what the seller said of them). I'm wanting to put them in a concrete container on my front porch. The diameter of the container is about 20 inches and it's about a foot and a half deep. Do you think this will be enough room for 3 miniature talls?

Sounds like you have the proper container. How about putting a little
humus and peat moss in it. Concrete pot may get overly dry in summer
so water weekly.

My Miniature acrcade/ game room