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#1
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keeping roses upright
Hi all,
I'm a newbie here, so if there's an FAQ or something where this might be answered then feel free to point me in the right direction. I've just moved into a new house, and one of the things that I liked about it was the fact that it has several well established roses. You can imagine my despair when I awoke yesterday to find 3 of them lying down! We had a particularly windy night (in Melbourne, Australia) and I can only assume and hope that the wind blew them over. I propped them back up on the stakes that they had obviously grown on, but got home tonight to find them fallen over again (stakes out of the ground). Now this complicates things - I have two border collies, and I'm concerned they may think pulling roses out of the ground is a game! I need some defences! The roses appear to be in pots, sunk into the ground. Is this common? Should I dig them out and take them out of their pots? My problem with the pots is that it limits the depth that I can get the stakes into the ground, and I imagine would also limit the rose itself. The rose 'trunks' are about 18 inches before any branches come out, and so I was thinking that I could put something around the trunk that would give me something to tether the rose trunk to and at the same time prevent the dogs from getting involved. Does anyone have any advice for an inexperienced gardner? cheers dim |
#2
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keeping roses upright
"Dmitri Colebatch" colebatchd_gmail.com wrote in message
. .. Hi all, Howdy and welcome! I'm a newbie here, so if there's an FAQ or something where this might be answered then feel free to point me in the right direction. I'll try to help you have some great resources on hand, starting with links at: http://www.rose.org.au/ I've just moved into a new house, and one of the things that I liked about it was the fact that it has several well established roses. Yes, that's how I got hooked on roses. You can imagine my despair when I awoke yesterday to find 3 of them lying down! We had a particularly windy night (in Melbourne, Australia) I have friends in Victoria and have visited several times. Lovely area. and I can only assume and hope that the wind blew them over. I propped them back up on the stakes that they had obviously grown on, but got home tonight to find them fallen over again (stakes out of the ground). Now this complicates things - I have two border collies, and I'm concerned they may think pulling roses out of the ground is a game! I need some defences! If you can find something like chicken wire - I don't know what it's called in Australia but a kind of wire fence with big holes in it that lets air through but keeps animals out - you can make cages for the roses. I do that for some of my roses that attract rabbits. I put the fence outside the drip line, so there's plenty of room for the rose. The roses appear to be in pots, sunk into the ground. Is this common? Ah - no. Unless the pots are very large, and the roses very small, the roots are being limited quite a bit. Rose roots like to spread. I'm guessing that's one reason the wind was able to uproot your roses. They should be planted directly in the ground. You might need to amend the soil. Check with a local nursery about soil amendment for roses, given your soil conditions. Should I dig them out and take them out of their pots? You're coming into autumn, right? This is probably a good time to transplant. My problem with the pots is that it limits the depth that I can get the stakes into the ground, and I imagine would also limit the rose itself. Agreed. My concern is that, having been uprooted twice, the roses are very stressed and might well not survive. I think it might be best to take them out of the pots and put them in a well-prepared hole - lots of organic matter, like compost, but no fertilizer until growth starts again in the spring. If you can get hold of some liquid seaweed that's a wonderful root stimulator for roses or any other kind of plant. I use it for all new roses and as a general tonic for all my roses, even the mature ones, several times during the growing season. The stuff I get here is mixed 1 tablespoon to 1 gallon of water. Sorry to be non-metric but you can see you use a very little liquid seaweed. The rose 'trunks' are about 18 inches before any branches come out, I'm guessing these are rose standards, also known as rose trees or patio roses. I have very little experience with those. I have one in a pot on my front porch but it stays small and so the pot is sufficient in size. So some of what I said earlier might not be true. Small roses can live in pots, but they should be transplanted every three years and they generally won't do as well as they would in the ground. I suggest you read up on rose standards or patio roses to see if that's what you have. Here's a link to start you off: http://www.rosemagazine.com/articles04/tree_roses/ Note: The American Rose Society now calls patio roses "mini-flora roses", but I think Australia, New Zealand and Great Britain still refer to them as patio roses. and so I was thinking that I could put something around the trunk that would give me something to tether the rose trunk to and at the same time prevent the dogs from getting involved. Does anyone have any advice for an inexperienced gardner? cheers dim One note: I've corresponded with rose growers who, based on space, weather, and/or soil concerns, grew all their roses in pots. So it can be done, but I think if you can plant them in the ground, that's better for the rose. I've planted some roses in pots that haven't done well in the ground and their performance improved, but my first choice (with the exception of the one patio rose) is always going to be put them in the ground! Gail near San Antonio TX USA Zone 8 |
#3
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keeping roses upright
That was an excellent post Gail ;-))
Joe T Houston |
#4
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keeping roses upright
"jtill" wrote in message
oups.com... That was an excellent post Gail ;-)) Joe T Houston Thanks. I was afraid I was babbling on too much, but knowing little about the OP's situation, I thought it was safer to provide more, rather than less, information. That said, if anyone has other, even contradictory thoughts on the OP's query, I'd love to read them. I'm still learning! Gail near San Antonio TX Zone 8 |
#5
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keeping roses upright
Gail, do you visit rec.gardens.orchids? You would enjoy that group.
Joe T Houston |
#6
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keeping roses upright
"jtill" wrote in message
ups.com... Gail, do you visit rec.gardens.orchids? You would enjoy that group. Joe T Houston Nope, I don't grow orchids. Thanks for the invite, though, Joe. Gail |
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