Rose pruning
Well into July now winter has kicked in but spring bulbs are being encouraged to burst through the ground on milder days wanting to retreat. I am sure when they find out it is still winter. A big job here in our garden on those milder days last week cutting back deciduous shrubs, and dealing with convolvulus roots now that they have died off on top. In one smallish patch of garden where convolvulus was growing up and smothering shrubs last summer I dug out a wheelbarrow full of roots, I kid you not!!, long white roots that criss crossed this patch of ground had spread through plant roots along the fence line seeming to know where they needed to be to climb. It is so satisfying to start at one end of a root and remove it without breaking right to the other end. Because I never use weed spray on the garden, digging and pulling it out is the only way to beat it. Pruning: Understanding how something grows is helpful before pruning, does it flower on new or old wood, how mature does a fruit tree need to be to produce fruiting spurs, will a wound heal well or will it bleed like cherries and plums and if so when does it produce less sap?.There is a right time to prune any plant for it to respond beneficially for your purposes by producing new flowers, fruit, foliage or training to shape, ect. But sometimes it is best just to do it, the worst that can happen is that you will lose a season's flowering and learn a useful lesson at the same time. Hydrangeas and lavender are best left now until you see new growth. Rose pruning: I was going to leave pruning our roses until the end of this month but I got a bit carried away cutting back and made a start on a few of the larger varieties. In cold areas rose wood will still be too soft, the time by which rose pruning should be completed varies by several weeks from the warmest to coldest gardens, pruning should be done and dusted by the time buds break. Bush roses: concentrate on clearing the center of the bush, remove all inward facing branches at an outward facing bud, prune height back by two thirds always at an outward facing bud and remove any old and damaged branches. Brush old gnarly rose centers with a wire brush to stimulate and encourage new budding. Floribunda bush roses: like iceberg with a number of blooms on one stem need a few older branches taken right back each year to encourage new strong branching and newer branches taken back by two thirds. Hybrid tea roses:These are the roses that can grow a single exhibition bloom on a stem, these rose bushes can be pruned back quite hard to an outward facing bud. Standard bush roses:Same as bush roses. Climbing roses:These roses flower at their best when the branches are trained horizontally along a fence or wall, they will then develop small branches along the length to carry flowers. After a number of years a main horizontal branch will become unproductive and need to be removed, replaced with a new branch to be trained gently to take its place. The new branch will bud up quickly sending out small outward growing branches to harden off in a couple of years. To prune established horizontal branches, take the outward growing branches back to the second out facing bud closest to the main horizontal branch. Pillar roses:These are the best type to climb up and be trained over an arch or pergola. I cut the old growth back from these with a hedge trimmer Fairy rose and flower carpet roses: I also cut back with a hedge trimmer but opened them up by removing branches from the middle with secateurs. Bare rooted trees:The bulk of new season's bare rooted deciduous trees are arriving into retail shops now, plant when the soil is soft and moist, but avoid times when the ground is frozen or excessively wet. Evergreen trees and shrubs are on offer as well, choose now but don't be in a hurry to plant them at this coldest time of the year because you will not gain any new growth until spring. Keep in their bags or pots outside in a sheltered place to harden off, they can sit like this through winter. Make sure to read the labels and know how high and wide a shrub / tree will grow, some grow fast and when mature will throw considerable shade, if planting along the side of a house ask advice. Compost heaps; are working slowly now compared to summer and autumn but worms will still be working as long as there is adequate moisture. Heaps can be kept warmer by being covered, even straw can be used and will let in rain. Veg: Rain will have made veg gardens a bit soggy to work in, young veg will sit now without growing because they dislike cold wet ground. Once they dry out I plan to dig the raised gardens over and work in some manure enriched compost in readiness for spring planting. In cold areas, if the ground is frozen start garlic off in containers and plant out later when the ground warms up.Early seed potatoes can be left in the dark to sprout long translucent sprouts but put them in a frost free brightly lit place and they slowly develop knobbly green purple shoots which are ready to grow quickly when placed in the soil, this is called chitting. While chittlng is not necessary for main crop varieties, the first or second earliest benefit by maturing earlier.Fruit: Plant deciduous fruit trees and bushes in a sunny site, avoid frosty hollows for early starters such as plums and pears. Prune.early to Late Spring Peach and nectarine trees to maintain an open center (only if needed) in early spring this will allow the wounds to close faster as growth begins, early spring also allows you to see how many flower buds have survived the cold weather. Cherries need summer pruning as well for the first 5 years and only on a sunny day to avoid silver leaf. I have found If I prune an apple tree hard each winter it will make a mass of new growth but no blossom, hence no fruit. So now any tree or shrub that is growing too vigorously I wait until summer to prune hard, when leaves are fully grown, before roots start to store food for winter, cuts heal over pushing out no new growth. This is a good rule of thumb for cordons (espaliered trees) only cut back any weak growth in winter to encourage vigorous new shoots in spring. If removing large thick branches in summer while sap is up wounds may need sealed if they bleed. Strawberries: are a crop that needs to be shifted about to a new spot each growing season for best results. or replace what you grow them in, soil / compost otherwise they build up and harbour viruses. Plenty of time before this needs to be done but now is a good time to prepare a new bed. If starting new plants from runners always take the runner closest to the parent plant, snip off all runners outside of this then push the runner to be a new plant into the soil to make strong roots while still attached to the parent plant. Snip off in early spring and plant out into a new bed. After 3 years of fruiting plants should be composted and new ones ready to take their place. Cheers, Linda.
No comments:
Post a Comment