Technically speaking, all roses are flowering shrubs. Yet members of the group vary widely, from miniatures under a foot tall to climbing sorts. Narrowing the multitude of possible selections to just those that will thrive in your garden starts with learning the conditions roses need for a first-rate performance. Once you know these essentials, you'll also know what parts of your garden are naturally congenial to roses. You can then begin the enjoyable task of choosing the roses you want.

Choose the right location at the start! Once established, roses dislike transplanting -- and the process becomes more laborious as time passes and plants grow larger. Keep the following points in mind as you consider planting sites:

Exposure is crucial to success. Roses flourish in sunny locations. Most need at least 6 hours of sunshine daily, preferably all morning long and into the afternoon. Certain roses, including some old garden types, shrub roses, and climbers, are noted for their ability to thrive in partial shade.

Avoid planting roses where wind constantly hits the plants. Continuous strong winds spoil flowers and cause rapid transpiration from leaves, obliging you to water more often.

Soil should be both moisture retentive and fast draining. A condition known as "specific replant disease" inhibits growth of new roses planted in soil where roses have already been established. If you want to plant new roses in soil where roses have been growing for 5 years or more, dig planting holes 1-1/2 feet deep and at least that wide; then replace the old soil with fresh soil taken from another part of the garden.

Water must be available throughout the growing season. A steady supply of water and nutrients produces healthy, vigorous plants. If you plan to include roses among other shrubs or to plant them close to shrubs or trees, avoid companions that have greedy surface roots; if subjected to aggressive competition for water and fertilizer, your roses will suffer.

There are so many enticing roses that you may be tempted to buy every one that sounds appealing, then crowd them all into a single sunny planting. This would teach you a valuable lesson: to grow well and look good, roses need a certain amount of room. To avoid the disappointment that overcrowding brings, plan ahead for the kind of planting you want, then choose only as many plants as will thrive in the available space.

Exclusively roses. An area given over to roses alone is a long-standing tradition for showcasing different species.

An all-rose planting is an efficient setup for a cutting garden and accommodates the most roses in a given area -- a particular advantage for the enthusiast with space constraints.

Roses in partnership. Viewed as flowering shrubs, roses are valuable if not indispensable components of mixed floral plantings. And the modern mixed border -- a descendant of the old-fashioned garden, in which everything from blooming shrubs to vegetables assorted in riotous blend -- offers niches for roses of all sorts.

Specialty plantings. Roses can shine in solo acts. Carefully chosen and sited, an individual rose makes an unforgettable accent. A single shrub rose provides a colorful welcome beside a gate or entryway; just one climbing rose can transform an arch or rail fence; one of the extra-vigorous sorts adds unexpected decoration to a tall-growing tree. A judiciously placed standard rose is an immediate focal point.

Mass plantings of a single variety offer another unusual way to present roses. Larger growers serve as background and barrier plants; lower-growing types define spaces within a garden.

A rose that isn't fertilized won't decay. In fact, many species and shrub roses actually flourish without supplemental nutrients. But virtually all modern roses and many of the old garden sorts need at least a little fertilizer during the growing season to turn in their peak performance.

To apply dry fertilizer, scatter it over soil beneath branch spread of rose bush. Lightly scratch it into soil; then apply water to

Nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium are the major nutrients, the three elements used most by plants. Secondary nutrients include calcium, magnesium, and sulfur; trace elements include zinc, copper, boron, and a number of other elements needed only in minute amounts.

Nitrogen is the most critical element for good growth and bloom. It's also the one major nutrient that is water soluble.

In terms of composition, fertilizers are either dry or liquid; in derivation, they are either inorganic (manufactured) or organic (processed from formerly living or naturally occurring materials). The particular choice you make will depend on how convenient you find the product to use and, perhaps, on your philosophy. Whether dry or liquid, organic or inorganic, all fertilizers can be classed as complete -- containing all three of the major nutrients - or incomplete.

You prune a rose to promote a symmetrical bush, encourage new growth, and remove dead, damaged, or diseased wood. These are simple objectives, yet many novices are daunted by the prospect of pruning. Over the years, both low ("hard") and high ("light") pruning have been promoted as the way to do it.

A rose's roots, stems, and leaves work together to encourage growth and productivity. The roots absorb nutrients, which are then transported upward and throughout the stems in specialized cells. At the same time, leaves absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, then convert it into sugars and other nutrients which are carried throughout the plant in other specialized cells.

Remove unproductive wood. Cut out all dead wood and weak, twiggy branches. If an older cane produced only weak growth, remove it entirely.

Open up the bush. Remove branches that cross through the center. This gives you a vase-shaped plant -- slender or fat, depending on the plant's natural habit -- without a central tangle of twigs and leaves that can harbor insects and diseases. Growers often just shorten them, so they will produce leaves to shade the canes.

Cut to outward-facing buds. This reduces the amount of new growth that will grow into the plant's center. Bushes with a very spreading habit are an exception: on these, cutting to inside buds can encourage more upright growth.

Cover pruning cuts. Wherever cane borers are a serious problem, seal all pruning cuts you have made into pencil-thick or larger stems. A simple sealant is ordinary white glue.

Established rose plants are tough enough to survive on skimpy watering. But mere survival doesn't produce a garden display. To turn in the performance most of us want, roses need moisture in the root zone throughout the growing season. In setting up a watering regime for your roses, you'll need to address three questions. First, how much water do the plants need? Second, how often must you supply it? And finally, exactly how will you provide it?

A rose plant needs water to the full depth of its roots (assume 16 to 18 inches), in enough quantity to keep soil constantly moist but not waterlogged. This is accomplished by periodic deep watering, with the interval between waterings depending on soil type, frequency of rainfall, wind, and several other factors.

Soil type determines how much water you'll need to apply with each watering. Clay soils, absorb water slowly but hold more of it than do sandy soils, which have fewer but larger pore spaces.

To determine how deeply a given amount of water penetrates your garden soil, conduct a simple test. Do your normal watering (or a limited-time watering of, say, 30 minutes). The next day, dig a narrow hole 1-1/2 feet deep to see how far the moisture has penetrated. If you discover, for example, that 30 minutes of watering moistened only the top 10 inches of soil, you'll know that longer watering is needed to moisten the entire root zone.

Once you know how much water to apply with each watering, you'll need to determine how often to water. Again, soil type plays a role here. Sandy soil absorbs water rapidly and needs the least for deep penetration, but it dries out quickly; clay absorbs water slowly and needs a much greater amount for penetration through the entire root zone, but it retains moisture significantly longer. Thus, during "average" spring weather, you may need to water roses growing in sandy soil every 5 days, those in loam every 7 to 10 days, and those in clay every other week.

The simplest way to determine if it's time to water is to check the soil. Just dig a small hole. If the soil is moist at a depth of 3 inches, there's no need to water; if it isn't moist, water again for the time required for adequate penetration. Don't assume that rainfall will furnish all the water roses need; check the soil to be sure, and set up a rain gauge to monitor rainfall amounts.

Overhead sprinkling and flood irrigation are the traditional watering methods. Wherever there's dust or air pollution, leaves benefit from overhead watering every week or so, both to remove dust and to wash away some insect pests.

Sprinkling. If you want to give your roses overhead water, you can use hose-end sprinklers or install a permanent sprinkler system.

Flood Irrigation. The simplest way to irrigate roses is to create watering basins. Around each bush, build an earthen dike 2 to 6 inches high and about 3 feet across; then flood the basins and let the water soak into the soil. Adjust the water flow to the soil's absorption rate so the basin won't overflow, then leave water turned on for the time needed for adequate penetration.

Roses are the monuments of garden beauty. Handled and developed with care they can add variety and long term attraction to ones garden. Throughout Pakistan Roses have occupied a prominent position in our homes. With a large variety to choose from they can create a healthy and colorful atmosphere in your garden. An atmosphere full of life, love and joy. Roses are forever!