GARDENING Last call for rose pruning
DELAY IT MUCH MORE AND FLOWERING WILL BE SET BACK And roses growing in pots probably need new soil now as it tends to compact.
f the roses haven’t yet been pruned it is not too late to do so now. Delaying it much further in most of the regions of South Africa will delay flowering.
The relatively warm temperatures in July will have forced the roses that were pruned earlier into sprouting and a black frost in August could cause frost burning of these newly sprouted shoots. If it does happen, don’t worry, they will re-sprout. Do not be in a rush to cut off burned leaves. The rose will sort itself out.
If black frost is expected, the roses can be covered with a very light frost guard cloth or alternatively one can put a sprinkler on over the iced new shoots very early in the morning until the frost is gone. The water over the leaves slows down the melting of the iced-up water within the leaves. If you have not checked the stakes of standard roses, do so now. Check the ties that hold the stems to the stakes and renew them if there is any chance of strangulation, especially on younger stems that are still expanding.
The stake needs to go into the crown, which will protect the crown from wind damage or from snapping off below the bud grafting.
A good method is to “bandage” the stem, securing it to the stake with a shade cloth strip. This also keeps the water, flowing up and down the stem cool.
When using the bandage method on youngish standard roses it is advisable to wedge Styrofoam pieces between stem and stake to allow expansion.
Cable ties or wires easily strangle the standard stem and hamper growth.
Un-staked standards become top heavy and develop a skew trunk, straightening them improves growth. Roses growing in pots need a little attention now. Potting soil compacts over time and then the plant sinks in the pot, tub or container.
If this happens, it is a good time to lever out the plant with soil around its root ball. Push a spade down around the plant and work in fresh potting soil underneath the root ball.
Raise the level of the plant so that it is about 5cm from the edge of the container, fill in around the sides with more potting soil and water it well.
I recommend mixing controlled release fertiliser, Vigolonger. into the soil during the process.
Water very well after re-potting. Climbing roses are always the last to be pruned simply because it is quite a job to do well. It involves getting onto a ladder, cutting off the old ties, spreading the stems and branches, cutting out obvious old woody stems that do not re-sprout well and then selecting, spiralling or espaliering the remaining stems and long canes into positions where you want them to flower.
Since not all stems are cut back, delaying the task to August means they will still flower in October. On the other hand, huge old climbers that have not been pruned for years will still sprout and flower. With such climbers, one is not really concerned with the quality of individual blooms, but rather the effect that they will provide. At the end of August or the beginning of September, it is a very good idea to apply Koinor as a drench. It will keep aphids and other chewing insects away from your roses for a prolonged period of time.
Give pot roses a new lease of life by renewing the potting soil.