We scratched, it is alive - Is there any special fertilizer or anything I
should be doing for it?


"John Bachman" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 21 Jun 2004 09:33:11 -0400, "LeeAnne" wrote:

Hi all,

I live about 20 miles north of Boston, Zone 5 and have a large ROS in my
yard that has done well for many years. This year I've got NOTHING, no
buds, no leaves, no signs of life. I just cut two large branches off of
it
(from the ground up) - it was getting way too large and I'm thinking
maybe
that will scare it into doing something :-)

There are no signs of disease or bugs or anything, and the large sections
I
cut appeared to be alive - it's hard to tell though, when it's dormant
it's
so stiff.

It usually leafs out late, but this is ridiculous.

Anybody have a ROS go quiet for a year then come back?? Or is this thing
gonzo?

I live not far from you. The past winter was the worst for plants for
30 years (some say longer, no matter). If your ROS was in an
exposed area it may well have had winter damage. The leaf buds may
have been killed.

Follow the advice of another poster - scratch the bark with a knife.
If you see green it is alive, if brown it is dead. Remove all dead
and see what happens with the rest. In the fall, after dormancy
starts, cut it to the ground.

John