jojo Wrote:
Hi,

Bought this house in July and the rose bush just looked horrible.
only has 2 - 3 main stalks

What do I need to do to get a pleasant looking rose bush this spring.
Can I prune it...how far down.
should I treat it?

jojo

heres what i would do with a horrible looking rose bush which had 3
main stems.....

take one stem and reduce its hight by a third...take another and reduce
its hight by two thirds...take the last stem and cut it as close to the
ground as possible...do all this after the middle of february.
make the cuts if possible just above an outward facing dormant bud...if
none are showing look for a horizontal line across the stem showing
where a leaf once grew (the dormant buds are formed just above the
place where a leaf stalk meets a stem).

if this treatment is successful new growth will break out below the
areas where you made the cuts....now heres the best bit...each
subsequent year after mid february cut the tallest of the 3 stems down
to ground level...after a few years the oldest wood in your bush will
be no more than 3 years old and you should have a bush furnished from
top to bottom with flowers.

the above really applies to hybrid roses which is what the chances are
yours is.

treat with an all round organic feed if you wish at the begining of
march but only sparingly at first building up as the growing season
progresses then easing off after midsummer

good luck !


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Eyebright