planting

Graft union, to bury or not to bury?

A perennial question - should you plant grafted roses, with the graft/bud union above or below the soil level?

The biggest Australian rose nurseries and many books advise you to plant roses with the bud union above the soil level, (for example Treloars planting advice here. ) However I have found in my own garden, the few roses that I have planted with the graft union above the soil are much more susceptible to windrock. The plants that have the graft union buried also have the best of both worlds- the rootstock to get them started quickly and then eventually they will send down roots from the scion, making for a stronger and more stable plant. I am told that eventually they will become ‘own root’ and this mean that the roses will hopefully have a longer lifespan. But don’t take my word for it, two pre-emminant rosarians Michael Marriot and Paul Zimmerman both concur that planting the graft union below the soil is the best way in all climates.