Roses for shade

Roses can be perfect for adding colour and interest to shady, forgotten parts of the garden, providing flowers, rose hips and cover for wildlife. Whilst roses generally do not thrive in shade with most varieties growing best with a minimum of 6 hours sunlight per day, there are some varieties that will succeed with only 4-5 hours of good sun each day, even if they're cast into shadow the rest of the time (note though that no rose will succeed in complete shade all day). The key when growing roses in shade is to avoid areas where they'll be in a lot of competition from the roots of other shrubs and trees. You'll want to avoid dry spots, particularly areas with overhanging branches as these are normally places where surrounding trees take a lot of moisture from the soil. Be sure to incorporate plenty of rich well-rotted organic matter or manure when planting and, as always when planting roses, double dig the soil to eliminate compaction and help the spread of their long tap roots.