Moss roses will fill your compound with splashes of colour. These roses are not only accessible but affordable and easy to maintain.

You can get one plant for as low as sh1,000 and you don’t have to be an expert gardener to grow them.

For example, Rosette Male always admired flowers, especially those in bloom but she was apprehensive of planting them in her home. She feared that gardening takes a lot of time and money which she did not have.

However, one day, a friend gifted her three potted moss roses in different colours. She put them on her balcony and later realized that they did not need any care apart from watering them once in a while yet they bloomed all the time. From the moss roses, she began collecting other flowers.

They are also good for container gardens. Pot them and use them to decorate the walls, verandas and balcony. (Photo by Ritah Mukasa)

Ben Mitala, a gardener with Mitala classic compound designs says, moss roses are popular flowering annuals that make good ground covers since they spread to create a thick mat. They come in a variety of colours as well.

“To plant, mix good soil with charcoal dust, coffee or wood husks and some gravel,” he says.

They are also good for container gardens. Pot them and use them to decorate the walls, verandas and balcony. You can use them as garden hedges or line them up along the paved walkways, on stone walls, and in the rock garden. They also work well in hanging baskets.

They are easy to maintain

Mitala says, these roses flourish in full sun and well-drained soil. Unlike many plants that love water, the moss roses die in soggy soil. They need six to eight hours of full sun daily if you want them to bloom. If you put them in a shady area, they might fail to produce flowers.

Remember to prune them by removing any dry and diseased plants.