Rosa 'The Shepherdess'

Prepare the planting site by digging over the bed and incorporate liberal quantities of well rotted manure or compost; lighten heavy clay soil with half rotted straw. Dress the top soil with plenty of peat mixed with hop manure and chopped up turf. Fresh animal manure is harmful to the roots and should only be used in the bottom spit. Where possible, prepare the planting site a few weeks in advance. Do this in late summer for planting in autumn. Plant at any time between late autumn and late spring. Prepare a planting mixture of bone meal and moist peat. Spread out the roots in the planting hole and add the planting mixture until the roots are covered. Add soil and firm in the plant by treading.