Get ready for pruning
Once the weather thaws, it’ll be time to get your roses back into shape for summer
It’s very cold and the ground is frozen, but once temperatures increase it will be time to prepare for the new rose season and begin pruning. Pruning is easy. Cut out all old, dead stems and any that have been affected by frost back to where the pith inside the stem is white. Cut out any stems which are too small and weak to carry flowers. As much as possible, keep the centre of the bush free of stems and cut to an outwardfacing eye. This will give a balanced, healthy plant, which will flower its head off in summer.
If in doubt, prune your established plants back to half their height. It’s best to go easier on patios and minis and just cut them back by a third. In really bad winters, such as the one in 2010, I had to prune my plants back to almost ground level but
Dave Kenny
Dave is Editor of the Amateur Rose Breeders Association. He has been breeding roses for nearly 40 years. ‘Newsflash’, ‘Showmee Sunshine’ and ‘Lullaby’ are some of his bestknown. His roses have been awarded the Gold Star of the South Pacific Award, two President’s International Trophies, two Gold Standards and medals in ARBA Trials.
they grew and bloomed. Winter and early spring are good times to tidy up, prepare and plan for the rose year. Clear the beds of debris and weeds. Spread mulch on the beds when the soil heats up and begin your feeding programme by adding bonemeal to the soil. If you’re putting in new plants make sure the ground is prepared and ready.
Spring is a good time to plant bare-root roses. One of my greatest joys growing roses used to be getting the catalogues from the various growers and spending many winter evenings enjoying the photos and descriptions of the roses. Times have changed and now most rose growers have web pages and are on Facebook. You can order varieties, get advice and see photos of all the roses they advertise. But while looking up websites and roses on the internet is very entertaining,
I do miss browsing through the catalogues!
I’m really looking forward to the announcement of first results from the new rose trials at Rochfords nursery in Hertford in July. Hopefully the Covid-19 restrictions will have eased and we’ll all be able to travel to the event and meet with the trial judges, horticultural journalists and breeders. In time I believe the trial will be regarded as a worthy successor to the RNRS trials and as one of the great rose trials of the world. Kerry Austen and the staff at Rochfords have done a wonderful job of getting the trial up and running. Paul Rochford has been very generous in giving land for the trial area.
One of the peculiarities of rose growing and breeding is that while there has been huge changes and developments, the garden roses just don’t have the same colour range as those grown for cut flowers. Last year at the International Trade Fair for Plants in Germany, I saw some amazing blooms in brown (‘Café del Mar’) and lilac (‘Silvery Light’) and bright stable yellows on some of the cut flower stands.
Rose Society UK is going from strength to strength. Despite the difficulties of 2020, the membership has grown. The society’s webpage is www.therosesociety.org.uk and is full of information and ideas. Membership is £10 per annum and can be paid by following the links on the website. The society also has a Facebook page.
Tomatoes
Sow seed from late February to mid-March in a greenhouse. Outdoors, sow late March to early April.
Courgettes
Best started off indoors in April, sowing seed on its side and giving a bit of heat (18C/65F) to get them going.
Runner beans
Can be sown outdoors, but generally more successful if started indoors in April or May with one bean per pot.
Broccoli
Sow seed indoors in modules in March or April. Plant out in May in final positions, 45cm (1½ft) apart, watering well.