By Timmil
United Kingdom 
i have recently mooved into new home garden is clay i have found some lovely old roses sadly neglected bot still signs of life, i have loosened topsoil and watered soil was baked hard .when can i incorperate some manure or other soil conditioner.
16 Sep, 2011
Answers
I agree, and roses are said to do well on clay soil.
16 Sep, 2011
Do not dig close up to the rose roots though or you may damage them . You can simply mulch them. A dose of rose food would give them a boost in the spring too, once they start to grow again.
16 Sep, 2011
At any time, but in late autumn, if you could turn the soil over, let the frost break it down for you. Then in the spring, add as much organic materila as you can, plus well-rotted manure and horticultural grit. You could mulch your roses then, too, after you prune them.
Whenever you plant anything, make the hole bigger than normal and back-fill with compost.
16 Sep, 2011