Rose care and info for February in the Bay Area
By Royal Krieger, Morcom’s Rosarian
February is not too late for winter rose pruning. Since I prune a number of home rose gardens this time of year, I’m going to discuss how I approach such pruning.
When arriving at a rose garden the first thing I do is stand well back and observe the roses, I do not just start pruning. By doing this important first step I get a sense of the garden’s condition, rose care and determine how best to prune and shape the plants.
I often find that some roses are planted too close together. Removing or transplanting such roses for better spacing is often not acceptable with owners. If so, I’ll tend to prune favoring the dominate performers by allowing them more space to grow at the expense of less performing roses.
My guide when planting or pruning non-climber roses is similar to taking a family photo. For planting I want the rose plants staggered by placement and height so all plants can be seen from the viewing area. With respect to plant pruning, same photo rule applies. I tend to prune the canes toward the front of the plant somewhat lower than those in the back. By this “stacking and staggering,” there will be more show of blooms to view.
I start my pruning by first removing “junk” growth at the base and such growth higher on the canes plus weak and dead canes. I have now somewhat “opened up” the plant to better see its structure. Next, I usually remove crossing and possibly older canes while retaining the younger vigorous ones. I do not prune by standing in one position but continually move around the plant as well as stepping back a few feet to observe my pruning…not a foot or two but at least four-five feet back to view from where viewers will be looking. Also, with larger plants I do not complete the pruning on one side and then prune the other. Instead I prune part of one side and then prune part of the other side, staying in general pruning balance until I’ve finished. This greatly helps make better balanced and shaped plants, both individually but also their relationship to neighboring plants.
I find most home rose gardens have mostly hybrid teas, floribundas and climbers. For hybrid teas I generally prune for a “bowl” shape. However, there are some hybrid tea class roses that are not pruned this way such as ‘Marijke Koopman’ or ‘Mrs. William C. Egan’. In such cases I observe the plant’s cane structure to determine the best way to prune.
For floribunda class roses that do not have the typical hybrid tea structure, leaving some canes in the middle is often preferred.
Most large climbers require a wall, trellis or fence for support. If a trellis or wire fence is used, owners often weave some of the climber’s canes in the wire fence or trellis for support….not good. This inhibits cane access for pruning and does not allow canes to be moved and reshaped as the plant grows. Climber canes should be tied to the exterior of the trellises, fences or other supports facing the garden’s visitors. Canes should not be tied tightly to a support but loose enough to allow for growth. And, suggest never use thin wire, often cuts into the canes. (In my next CR article I’ll share my several year experimenting with different tie materials, methods to tie climber canes in place and doing so with ease and minimal cane damage.)
I’m often asked rose questions. Thought I share a few.
1) Asked last August. “Some of my rose leaves are turning yellow”
The problem is usually too much or two little water. As a general rule, if a yellow leaf pulls off easily that could be too much water. If the leaf is harder to pull off and possibly some leaves have brown dead edges and tips, probably too little water. Suggest continual checking the soil moisture content with a probe. If late summer-fall and mostly lower leaves starting to yellow, probably natural aging. (When I checked these roses, were way over watered.)
2) Late summer call. “My roses look healthy, lots of growth but little bloom.”
I asked if fertilizing. Said, “Fertilizing monthly with Miracle Gro.” Well, that’s likely the problem, over fertilizing and using a high nitrogen content chemical fertilizer.
I recommend a chemical fertilizer, such as Miracle Gro, that has a higher amount of nitrogen (“N”) than the other two main nutrients, phosphate (“P”) and potassium (“K”) for the first feeding as the roses start to leaf out from their winter pruning. The advantage of a chemical fertilizer is that the nutrients are more broken down so the roses can faster absorb the nutrients than using an organic fertilizer.
For a second feeding, around the 4th of July, best to use a balanced organic fertilizer. The “N-P-K” on the label should have about the same percentage of each nutrient.
A possible final organic fertilizing may be done late summer-early fall of mostly potassium and no nitrogen. Unless I see some rose structure weakness, I generally do not do a late season fertilizing since there is likely adequate potassium in the soil from the earlier feedings.
Regarding trace minerals, they are in most commercial fertilizers. Also, our Bay Area roses generally get adequate trace minerals from the drinking water.
3) Asked this January, “I have lots of rust on my roses and spider mites at the bottom. What should I do?”
Recommend removing all diseased leaves as part of the winter pruning. When finished winter pruning, rake out and remove all debris in the beds followed by spraying the pruned plants and surrounding ground with a horticultural oil. Most nurseries sell the oil in a bottle that attaches to the hose…a bit more expensive but very convenient.
For spider mites, once roses leaf out, continually remove diseased leaves and any weak “junk” growth at the bottom of the plant, at least 6-8″ for “normal” sized plants, and continue to do so throughout the year. This should dramatically reduce or eliminate the spider mite problem.
For rust and black spot, also continually removing all diseased leaves from the plant and ground. I’ve noted that owners prefer not to remove diseased leaves as the roses are about to produce their first spring bloom, “It makes the plant look so naked.” I agree, but the replacement leaves will soon grow back, often with little or no disease.
Happy gardening, Royal