Skip to main content

What you need for a gorgeous indoor rose plant

Growing an indoor rose garden for a lively and elegant display

Roses are beautiful, elegant flowers, but they’re also typically flowers that are grown outside. They can take up a lot of space and have a reputation for being somewhat particular about their care. So what should you do if you have limited space, or if the weather isn’t compatible with growing roses? Grow them indoors, of course! Here’s everything you need to know to craft a successful indoor rose garden.

Coral Knock Out rose

Can you grow roses inside?

Yes, you absolutely can! Revitalize your indoor garden with a bounty of roses. Roses will grow just as well indoors as they would outdoors, as long as you take proper care of them. Here are the basics of rose care and how they’re impacted by the change of scenery.

Light is very important for roses. Most rose varieties need roughly six hours of direct sunlight a day. For indoor roses, make sure they have plenty of light or look for a variety that specifically grows in lower light.

Water is important for roses in two ways. Make sure the top inch of the soil is dry before you water to avoid overwatering, but don’t let the soil dry out completely. Water is also important for humidity. If the air isn’t humid enough, your rose may develop a spider mite infestation! You can place your rose in a tray with just a little water in it, which creates more humidity around the plant as the water evaporates.

Roses are not very fond of the cold. They need temperatures ranging from 60 to 75 F to be comfortable. However, you can start your roses in January or February, and the seeds should be just fine. The soil will keep them warm, and you should see sprouts by spring!

Roses do need to be pruned, and this is especially true of indoor roses, to keep them healthy and to keep them from taking up too much room. Simply clip faded or wilted blooms off with sharp garden shears, clippers, or a blade.

Small rose plant with pink flowers in a brown pot on a white table indoors

What varieties of rose grow well inside?

The most popular rose variety for indoor gardens is the miniature rose! Like the name suggests, mini roses are smaller plants, making them easier and more convenient for indoor spaces with less room.

If you have some vertical space, but not as much floor space, try climbing roses! They need a trellis or grid of some sort to hold onto and climb, but they are otherwise no more difficult to care for than any other rose.

Of course, any rose variety can be grown indoors if you have the space and time to devote to them! If you need a variety that does well in partial shade, consider Sophy’s rose, golden unicorn rose, and French lace rose!

Cluster of Sophy's Rose roses, dark pink blossoms

How much space does it take to grow roses inside?

The amount of space you need depends on how many roses you have and what variety they are. Full-size rose bushes will, naturally, take up much more room than miniature roses, and one rose plant needs less room than several.

Miniature roses can grow to be between 1 and 4 feet tall, while most regular roses grow to be 6 to 8 feet tall. However, you can keep them smaller through regular careful pruning. Climbing roses will grow more or less as tall as you let them.

In general, make sure you have a few feet for each rose plant. When they’re young, they take up less space and can be grouped closer together, with adjustments as they grow.

Woman at an indoor table, repotting a small rose plant with an orange flower

Can you move indoor roses outside?

You can move your roses outdoors, as long as the weather is nice. In spring and summer, your roses may appreciate being outdoors! There are a few things to consider, though.

You want to make sure that you move them outside a little at a time. Sudden changes in a plant’s environment can shock them, leading to health problems. Start putting them outside for small increments of time and gradually work your way up.

If you aren’t transplanting them and are leaving them in the pot, you still need to move them gradually. However, something else to consider is what pot they’re in. While different materials offer different benefits, the most important thing to take into account is size. During a rose’s early life, you’ll see a more dramatic increase in size, so they need to be repotted more often.

However, once they’re mostly grown, they need to be repotted every year or two as they grow. The pots need to be just bigger than the root ball. This gives the roots room to grow, but it doesn’t leave too much empty space for extra water to pool.

Every rose has its thorns, but now you know how to successfully avoid the thorns associated with creating an indoor rose garden! There are a lot of ways to make your garden your own, so don’t be afraid to experiment with different varieties and arrangements.

Editors' Recommendations

Cayla Leonard
Cayla Leonard is a writer from North Carolina who is passionate about plants.  She enjoys reading and writing fiction and…
Quaking aspens are tall, beautiful, and easier to care for than you might expect
Read here and learn how to grow quaking aspens
Quaking aspen trees

Quaking aspens are native deciduous trees with striking and easily recognizable silhouettes. They have tall, thin trunks wrapped in white or silver bark. Although they are stunning all year long, with small white flowers in the spring and round green leaves in the summer, quaking aspens are perhaps most famous for their brilliant gold color of fall foliage. In addition to their beauty, quaking aspens are also extremely good for the environment. If you’re thinking about planting a quaking aspen tree in your yard, this is the care guide for you.
How to plant a quaking aspen
When choosing your planting site, there are a few key things to look for. First, your planting site should be well away from power lines, buildings, or other structures that tree growth could damage. Quaking aspens typically grow to between 30 and 50 feet tall (although some can grow much taller) and their longest branches can grow up to 30 feet long, so make sure your tree has plenty of room.

Your location should also be in full sun with rich, moist soil. Quaking aspens need at least 4 to 6 hours of sun each day in order to grow properly. In addition to the sun, a quaking aspen needs plenty of water and nutrients. Adding compost to your soil before you begin planting can help improve poor soil. Although it needs moist soil, avoid planting your quaking aspen in wetlands or dips where water pools, as too much standing water can lead to fungal infections.

Read more
Blazing stars will fill your summer garden with color: A liatris care guide
Growing and caring for liatris
Tall purple liatris (blazing star) with butterflies

There are many wonderful plants you can add to your summer flower garden for stunning color, from tall and bright sunflowers to short and sweet zinnia. If you’re planning your garden now, you should definitely consider adding liatris, also called blazing star, to the mix! This tall, drought-tolerant, native perennial has stunning purple flowers. It’ll even attract butterflies. Here’s everything you need to know about planting and caring for liatris.
Planting liatris
You can plant liatris bulbs in the spring or fall, but you can transplant mature plants during any season. Choose a location with full sun and well-draining soil to plant your liatris in. Blazing stars can tolerate some light shade, but they won’t thrive unless they get at least 6 hours of sun each day. Spacing is important when planting liatris, as they can grow to 2 feet high and 1.5 feet wide. Plant your liatris bulbs 12 to 15 inches apart so they have plenty of space to grow.

In addition to having well-draining soil, it should also be average or poor. Many plants prefer soil that's rich with organic matter, but liatris has an unusual quirk! The flower stalks will sometimes bend or flop over if the soil is too rich.

Read more
The delicate lenten rose has some unusual and delightful varieties – here are our favorites
5 lenten rose varieties to grow in your garden
White hellebore flowers

Lenten roses, also known as hellebore, are beautiful, delicate-looking flowers that come in many colors and patterns. As shade-loving flowers, they’re particularly useful for brightening up darker sections of your garden. Whether you want a classic solid purple variety or a more intricate spotted one, there’s a perfect lenten rose for any garden. Looking for a new lenten rose variety to add to your home or garden? Try one of these five!

Fire and Ice
Fire and Ice is a stunning white and pink variety from the Winter Jewels series. Each petal is predominantly white, but the edges are a vibrant shade of pink. It has double-petaled flowers, meaning there are two layers of petals, giving the blooms a fuller appearance. Fire and Ice grows to around a foot and a half tall and is an early-blooming lenten rose. While hellebore are generally among the earliest blooming spring flowers, Fire and Ice often blooms during winter.

Read more