PRUNING BUSHES AND STANDARDS - Part 1

Articles In This Section:

· WINTER PRUNING

· THE NECESSITY FOR PRUNING

· HEAVY OR LIGHT PRUNING

· WHEN TO PRUNE

· PRUNING BUSHES AND STANDARDS - Part 1

· PRUNING BUSHES AND STANDARDS - Part 2

· PRUNING FLORIBUNDAS AND POLYANTHAS

· PRUNING CLIMBERS

· PRUNING WICHURAIANA RAMBLERS

· PRUNING ROSE HEDGES

Never set out to prune rose plants to a preconceived shape. First completely remove all spindly growth, all dead wood, all old worn-out wood, all watershoots that have grown since 31st March in established plants, and all branches that are

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Fig. 11. Pruning. 1. Cut made to slant in wrong direction. 2. Cut made too high above eye. 3. Cut made too close to eye. 4. Cut made at too acute an angle. 5. Cut made too horizontal. 6. Jagged cut. 7. Cut correctly made.

growing across the centre of the plant. Laterals sent out, after pruning, from these branches will so congest the plant that they will damage one another by rubbing. They are not removed to make the plant look neater, but to give better results. After these removals there will remain only vigorous mature branches. If there are too many, select the best by way of position, spacing, and vigour. Remove, at their bases, those in excess of requirements; the number does not matter so much as the spacing. Some will be watershoots-strong, straight shoots coming from the union of bud and stock, so far devoid of laterals, and headed by a group of blooms.

To prune a watershoot, simply remove the central part of its head and clip the remaining two or three stems just distal to a pair of leaves or leaflets that are to be found on each of them. Often the lateral stems bear more than one pair of leaflets. The growth-buds in the angles between the lower leaves and the stems will be stronger, and pruning should be done at these levels. By cutting into the main branch you would be calling on very immature growth-buds to throw out lateral growths, and the buds would probably fail and the whole branch would die. If the upper parts only of the watershoot are shortened, these immature buds on the main branch will, in the course of the following few months, throw out strong lateral branches. At the same time the upper part may weaken and need to be shortened to the highest well-placed strong lateral. Complete removal should be done only when the shoot is very badly placed, is very crooked, or is very immature, for watershoots are precious in plant-building. Lightly pruned, they will build up a big, new, vigorous section of the bush. If still in any doubt as to how to prune a watershoot, simply break off the seed-pods, which is better than cutting into the shoot itself. Nature will work out quite a good solution. This same procedure applies to watershoots throughout the whole year.