Rose Oso Easy series
* Common name: Rose Oso Easy series
Rose Oso Easy Urban Legend.
Credit: Spring Meadow Nursery
* Botanical name: Rosa Oso Easy series
* What it is: Oso Easy is a line of nine compact and disease-resistant shrub roses introduced by Spring Meadow Nursery.
These are some of the easiest to grow roses, and most stay under two feet tall and less than three feet wide.
They’re also long-blooming – usually starting in June and producing at least some flowers throughout the growing season.
The red-blooming Urban Legend was a strong enough performer in the series to win an American Garden Rose Selection award in five different regions (including the Northeast), while Double Pink and Petit Pink were two Oso Easy varieties that won “Local Artist” awards in the American Rose Trials for Sustainability program.
Colors also include white (Ice Bay), deep pink (Easy Peasy), yellow (Lemon Zest), soft peach (Sunorita), and a changeable blend of peach, pink, salmon (Mango Salsa Pink).
* Size: Varies by variety, with some topping out at 12 to 18 inches tall and others growing up to three feet tall. Spread is typically two to three feet.
* Where to use: Full sun is best, but shrub roses do surprisingly well in partly shaded spots, too. Oso Easy’s compact size make them suitable for foundation beds, border gardens, massing on sunny banks, or in any mixed garden.
* Care: Cut back one-third to one-half in March before new growth begins. Spent flowers also can be snipped or lightly sheared off to encourage continual blooming throughout the summer and into fall, but this deadheading isn’t required.
Fertilize with a granular fertilizer formulated for roses in early spring. For maximum flowering, scatter additional fertilizer in June.
No spraying needed. Water weekly during hot, dry spells… wetting the ground, not over the leaves.
* Great partner: Purple-blooming perennials look good with almost all of the Oso Easy series, including salvia, lavender, variegated liriope, iris, and asters. Ornamental grasses and upright boxwoods or hollies make good backdrops.