Rose pruning goes live again
EXPERT: AIMING TO BEGIN GIVING POPULAR DEMONSTRATIONS, STARTING NEXT MONTH
Numbers will, however, be restricted in terms of level 3 regulations.
Last year, for the first time in 50 years, rose grower Ludwig Taschner was unable to present his popular annual winter rose pruning demonstrations because of Covid-19. But this year, the pruning maestro is back, albeit with all the level 3 protocols being observed!
He will be giving demonstrations today and tomorrow at the Pretoria rose farm, followed by demonstrations in Johannesburg next weekend.
Ludwig said: “In the 50-odd years that I have given pruning demonstrations and written about it, I have always said that rose pruning is easy, and you cannot do it wrong.
“There are lots of old wives’ tales passed down over generations which are not applicable to modern roses and certainly do not apply to roses grown in warm climates such as ours.”
Pruning times vary according to the plants but for roses, it is from 20 July to early August, when the plants are dormant. In very cold areas, pruning is delayed until mid-August.
For those who are out of range of the pruning demonstrations here is Ludwig’s basic guide.
Rose bushes (hybrid tea, floribunda, Fairytale, Antico Moderno)
These roses benefit most from pruning. Roses that did not perform well last season should be pruned lightly, leaving many side stems.
In this way the stem retains much of the stored starches that will be converted back to energy in spring, giving the bush a quick start.
Cut tall growing roses down to a height of 70cm and medium growers to a height of 50cm. Remove dead wood or very old wood, reduce forked stems to a single stem and cut out criss-crossing growth.
Take off all the leaves.
Roses which performed well in the past season and have grown far too tall may be cut back severely to about knee height.
The severe pruning certainly also applies to densely planted rose beds.
The middle road is to remove most or all of the older stems and cut back the main leaders to about hip height.
Pruning Iceberg roses
Iceberg is a floribunda rose, but it is treated differently to other floribundas because Iceberg is able to sprout from last season’s wood. It can simply be trimmed or thinned out.
Standard Roses
Standard roses are bush roses on top of a tall single stem.
Only prune the crown by cutting back all stems and branches to about 500 mm of the crown or bud union and then remove all the older wood and twigs.
Groundcover roses
The very popular Granny roses, as well as Deloitte and Touche, fall into this category.
Using hedge clippers, shorten the prostrate growing stems to a maximum of 50 cm measured from the centre.
Pruning a ercare
After pruning, renew the soil around the roses with compost and fertiliser. This is just as important as pruning. Dig in the compost and organic material to a depth of 30cm and water well afterwards. Water once a week.