|
Need Pruning help
Hi all,
I know nothing about caring for roses but inherited a rose plant from the previous owners of my home. Didn't really do anything with it last year and just noticed the other day that it's pretty overgrown, so much so that it's taking its trellis down with it. I'm in Boston, we're still going below freezing at night and some days, though I'm hearing 40s and 50s later this week. Is this a good time to prune it? How do I go about pruning it and how far back can I safely cut? And do I need to actually attach it to the trellis or will it wind around on its own? Thanks for any advice you can give me! Laura |
Need Pruning help
"lj" wrote in message
... Hi all, I know nothing about caring for roses but inherited a rose plant from the previous owners of my home. Didn't really do anything with it last year and just noticed the other day that it's pretty overgrown, so much so that it's taking its trellis down with it. I'm in Boston, we're still going below freezing at night and some days, though I'm hearing 40s and 50s later this week. Is this a good time to prune it? How do I go about pruning it and how far back can I safely cut? And do I need to actually attach it to the trellis or will it wind around on its own? Thanks for any advice you can give me! Laura Pruning partly depends on the kind of rose, but some general rules: -usually prune after the last average frost date. I don't know when that is for your area, but not now. You can probably ask a local nursery. -cut out anything that's dead, as far down as you can Dead stuff will usually be dark brown and brittle, and if you cut a little bit back to check first, the pith - inside - will be brown rather than a healthy white. -cut out canes that cross and rub against other canes and keep the center all clogged up Good air circulation helps the rose, and makes pruning in subsequent years easier IMO. If that takes care of about 1/3 of the plant, you can probably stop and see how it grows, do more next year. Or if you really want to do more, take out a few healthy looking canes all the way down to the bud union, but no more than a total of about a third of the plant. That's a wild guess, since I don't know what kind of rose it is, but is probably reasonably conservative advice. Some roses "sulk" if pruned too much (not bloom, or bloom less), but it's hard to kill a rose that's been growing for awhile by over- or under-pruning. Rose canes need to be attached, they have no suckers to attach themselves like some vines. I buy flexible green tape (garden supply stores) and tie up canes with that. Just don't tie tightly. You might wander into a local nursery that carries roses (or the botanical gardens) and get some advice on pruning for your area. Also check articles at the American Rose Society web site: www.ars.org And since it's not that easy to find the link to articles: http://www.ars.org/explore.cfm/articles/ HTH - Gail San Antonio TX |
Need Pruning help
"lj" wrote in message
... Hi all, I know nothing about caring for roses but inherited a rose plant from the previous owners of my home. Didn't really do anything with it last year and just noticed the other day that it's pretty overgrown, so much so that it's taking its trellis down with it. I'm in Boston, we're still going below freezing at night and some days, though I'm hearing 40s and 50s later this week. Is this a good time to prune it? How do I go about pruning it and how far back can I safely cut? And do I need to actually attach it to the trellis or will it wind around on its own? Thanks for any advice you can give me! Laura Pruning partly depends on the kind of rose, but some general rules: -usually prune after the last average frost date. I don't know when that is for your area, but not now. You can probably ask a local nursery. -cut out anything that's dead, as far down as you can Dead stuff will usually be dark brown and brittle, and if you cut a little bit back to check first, the pith - inside - will be brown rather than a healthy white. -cut out canes that cross and rub against other canes and keep the center all clogged up Good air circulation helps the rose, and makes pruning in subsequent years easier IMO. If that takes care of about 1/3 of the plant, you can probably stop and see how it grows, do more next year. Or if you really want to do more, take out a few healthy looking canes all the way down to the bud union, but no more than a total of about a third of the plant. That's a wild guess, since I don't know what kind of rose it is, but is probably reasonably conservative advice. Some roses "sulk" if pruned too much (not bloom, or bloom less), but it's hard to kill a rose that's been growing for awhile by over- or under-pruning. Rose canes need to be attached, they have no suckers to attach themselves like some vines. I buy flexible green tape (garden supply stores) and tie up canes with that. Just don't tie tightly. You might wander into a local nursery that carries roses (or the botanical gardens) and get some advice on pruning for your area. Also check articles at the American Rose Society web site: www.ars.org And since it's not that easy to find the link to articles: http://www.ars.org/explore.cfm/articles/ HTH - Gail San Antonio TX |
Need Pruning help
"lj" wrote in message
... Hi all, I know nothing about caring for roses but inherited a rose plant from the previous owners of my home. Didn't really do anything with it last year and just noticed the other day that it's pretty overgrown, so much so that it's taking its trellis down with it. I'm in Boston, we're still going below freezing at night and some days, though I'm hearing 40s and 50s later this week. Is this a good time to prune it? How do I go about pruning it and how far back can I safely cut? And do I need to actually attach it to the trellis or will it wind around on its own? Thanks for any advice you can give me! Laura Pruning partly depends on the kind of rose, but some general rules: -usually prune after the last average frost date. I don't know when that is for your area, but not now. You can probably ask a local nursery. -cut out anything that's dead, as far down as you can Dead stuff will usually be dark brown and brittle, and if you cut a little bit back to check first, the pith - inside - will be brown rather than a healthy white. -cut out canes that cross and rub against other canes and keep the center all clogged up Good air circulation helps the rose, and makes pruning in subsequent years easier IMO. If that takes care of about 1/3 of the plant, you can probably stop and see how it grows, do more next year. Or if you really want to do more, take out a few healthy looking canes all the way down to the bud union, but no more than a total of about a third of the plant. That's a wild guess, since I don't know what kind of rose it is, but is probably reasonably conservative advice. Some roses "sulk" if pruned too much (not bloom, or bloom less), but it's hard to kill a rose that's been growing for awhile by over- or under-pruning. Rose canes need to be attached, they have no suckers to attach themselves like some vines. I buy flexible green tape (garden supply stores) and tie up canes with that. Just don't tie tightly. You might wander into a local nursery that carries roses (or the botanical gardens) and get some advice on pruning for your area. Also check articles at the American Rose Society web site: www.ars.org And since it's not that easy to find the link to articles: http://www.ars.org/explore.cfm/articles/ HTH - Gail San Antonio TX |
Need Pruning help
"lj" wrote in message
... Hi all, I know nothing about caring for roses but inherited a rose plant from the previous owners of my home. Didn't really do anything with it last year and just noticed the other day that it's pretty overgrown, so much so that it's taking its trellis down with it. I'm in Boston, we're still going below freezing at night and some days, though I'm hearing 40s and 50s later this week. Is this a good time to prune it? How do I go about pruning it and how far back can I safely cut? And do I need to actually attach it to the trellis or will it wind around on its own? Thanks for any advice you can give me! Laura Pruning partly depends on the kind of rose, but some general rules: -usually prune after the last average frost date. I don't know when that is for your area, but not now. You can probably ask a local nursery. -cut out anything that's dead, as far down as you can Dead stuff will usually be dark brown and brittle, and if you cut a little bit back to check first, the pith - inside - will be brown rather than a healthy white. -cut out canes that cross and rub against other canes and keep the center all clogged up Good air circulation helps the rose, and makes pruning in subsequent years easier IMO. If that takes care of about 1/3 of the plant, you can probably stop and see how it grows, do more next year. Or if you really want to do more, take out a few healthy looking canes all the way down to the bud union, but no more than a total of about a third of the plant. That's a wild guess, since I don't know what kind of rose it is, but is probably reasonably conservative advice. Some roses "sulk" if pruned too much (not bloom, or bloom less), but it's hard to kill a rose that's been growing for awhile by over- or under-pruning. Rose canes need to be attached, they have no suckers to attach themselves like some vines. I buy flexible green tape (garden supply stores) and tie up canes with that. Just don't tie tightly. You might wander into a local nursery that carries roses (or the botanical gardens) and get some advice on pruning for your area. Also check articles at the American Rose Society web site: www.ars.org And since it's not that easy to find the link to articles: http://www.ars.org/explore.cfm/articles/ HTH - Gail San Antonio TX |
Need Pruning help
Thanks, Gail. It sounds like I'm stuck with the monster until fall!
"Gail Futoran" wrote in message ... "lj" wrote in message ... Hi all, I know nothing about caring for roses but inherited a rose plant from the previous owners of my home. Didn't really do anything with it last year and just noticed the other day that it's pretty overgrown, so much so that it's taking its trellis down with it. I'm in Boston, we're still going below freezing at night and some days, though I'm hearing 40s and 50s later this week. Is this a good time to prune it? How do I go about pruning it and how far back can I safely cut? And do I need to actually attach it to the trellis or will it wind around on its own? Thanks for any advice you can give me! Laura Pruning partly depends on the kind of rose, but some general rules: -usually prune after the last average frost date. I don't know when that is for your area, but not now. You can probably ask a local nursery. -cut out anything that's dead, as far down as you can Dead stuff will usually be dark brown and brittle, and if you cut a little bit back to check first, the pith - inside - will be brown rather than a healthy white. -cut out canes that cross and rub against other canes and keep the center all clogged up Good air circulation helps the rose, and makes pruning in subsequent years easier IMO. If that takes care of about 1/3 of the plant, you can probably stop and see how it grows, do more next year. Or if you really want to do more, take out a few healthy looking canes all the way down to the bud union, but no more than a total of about a third of the plant. That's a wild guess, since I don't know what kind of rose it is, but is probably reasonably conservative advice. Some roses "sulk" if pruned too much (not bloom, or bloom less), but it's hard to kill a rose that's been growing for awhile by over- or under-pruning. Rose canes need to be attached, they have no suckers to attach themselves like some vines. I buy flexible green tape (garden supply stores) and tie up canes with that. Just don't tie tightly. You might wander into a local nursery that carries roses (or the botanical gardens) and get some advice on pruning for your area. Also check articles at the American Rose Society web site: www.ars.org And since it's not that easy to find the link to articles: http://www.ars.org/explore.cfm/articles/ HTH - Gail San Antonio TX |
Need Pruning help
"lj" wrote in message
... Thanks, Gail. It sounds like I'm stuck with the monster until fall! I think I may have misled you. :( Spring is the best time to prune, as roses are coming out of dormancy (no or few leaves). Waiting until after the average frost date for your area - which is early May for your location: http://www.victoryseeds.com/frost/ma.html -is what is usually recommended for pruning roses. Some people also do a fall pruning but I think most experts recommend major pruning in spring. Depending on where the rose is located - for example, if it's close to the house which is a warmer location - you might be able to get away with a major pruning now. But you're in a MUCH colder zone than I am, and all my rose experience has been down here in the South/west. I recommend going to a local nursery, describe the rose (I'm referring mostly to size here) and where it's growing and they can probably give you good advice. At any rate, you can cut out dead canes and even crossing canes at pretty much anytime, assuming the bush has a lot of canes (so you're not accidentally cutting out all healthy stuff). It's hard to kill a healthy rose by pruning, unless you chop it off to the ground. :) Gail |
Need Pruning help
"lj" wrote in message
... Thanks, Gail. It sounds like I'm stuck with the monster until fall! I think I may have misled you. :( Spring is the best time to prune, as roses are coming out of dormancy (no or few leaves). Waiting until after the average frost date for your area - which is early May for your location: http://www.victoryseeds.com/frost/ma.html -is what is usually recommended for pruning roses. Some people also do a fall pruning but I think most experts recommend major pruning in spring. Depending on where the rose is located - for example, if it's close to the house which is a warmer location - you might be able to get away with a major pruning now. But you're in a MUCH colder zone than I am, and all my rose experience has been down here in the South/west. I recommend going to a local nursery, describe the rose (I'm referring mostly to size here) and where it's growing and they can probably give you good advice. At any rate, you can cut out dead canes and even crossing canes at pretty much anytime, assuming the bush has a lot of canes (so you're not accidentally cutting out all healthy stuff). It's hard to kill a healthy rose by pruning, unless you chop it off to the ground. :) Gail |
| All times are GMT +1. The time now is 05:59 AM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
GardenBanter