Question:
I didn't prune my roses well enough during the winter months. So, I’ve got gangly stems that blow around in the wind. Is it safe to drastically prune the roses once the first sets of flowers are spent?Answer:
- Roses are very resilient plants.
- You can drastically cut them back after the first, second, or third blooming cycle. Although most people think of it as a winter activity, roses are pruned year-round. Ideally, the most severe pruning is done during the winter when the plants are dormant.
- After each blooming cycle, pruning is used to groom the plants by reducing the top growth and the sides to keep the plants in balance and removing the spent flowers or deadheading. Most of the rose pruning information says to prune to the second set of five leaves, but I suggest you ignore this point. Grandiflora and Hybrid Tea varieties quickly grow five to six feet tall per year. The only way to keep them from overgrowing an area is to prune them back after each flush of flowers. This is also called shaping the plant.
- Another common problem with these types of roses is that they're planted too close to one another. Pruning during the growing season prevents them from merging into one massive plant with several stems. So, I have no problem cutting back the gangly stems as far back as necessary and the rest of the plant.
- After pruning, you may need to take some special precautions with any bare or naked canes. The new growth or canes are usually green in color. They are very susceptible to sunburn from the direct sun when the temperatures are over eighty-five degrees.
- Sunburn causes the canes to turn black, and they may die from it. This is not a problem during the winter months as the days are shorter, the temperatures are cooler, and there is cloud cover with moisture on many days.
- You protect the naked canes for two to four weeks by covering or draping shade cloth over the plant(s). Feed the roses with Rose Food to encourage new growth. The shade cloth is removed once the new growth shades the bare canes. Covering the plants will not be necessary if there is lots of foliage left after pruning.
Question:
I have a white Potato Vine growing on an arbor in a container. Recently, I noticed roots from the vine that had grown out of the bottom of the container. If I cut these roots, will the vine die?Answer:
- I wouldn't expect your Potato Vine to die from trimming the roots. There is always a possibility, but you can minimize that by pruning the top growth after pruning the roots. There is a direct relationship between the roots under the ground and the foliage it supports. The best time to do this is after the Potato vine has stopped blooming.