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cold weather killer.
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Posted by
ken-n.ga.mts 7b/7a (
My Page) on
Thu, Feb 16, 12 at 20:35
| This is my 4th winter up in this area and I found something (that I should have known) that will hurt ANY rose when it gets cold (teens or colder). Metal tie rods used for bush stability. I used them all the time in Fl and never had a problem. Hardly ever had any cold issues. But up here in N.GA., it gets cold. When metal gets cold, it REALLY holds the cold. This past winter has been mild with just a few hard freezes that lasted less then a week or so. My problem is that last summer several roses grew quite large and I used 1/2 inch tie rods to hold them up correctly. Tying them off about 2/3 of the way up the bush. I allowed two roses to have a large cane come in contact with the metal. Louise Estes and Septer'd Isle. Checked all my bush's real good today and found dead canes where they came in steady contact with the metal rods. Something so basic but overlooked. I'll bet it doesn't happen again. Every fall all my bushs will get a winter LOOKING at. I'll bet I don't make this simple to overlook mistake again. Plus I'm going to start using wood staking instead of metal. Learning to grow roses in the cold is a LOT different then growing 12 months out of the year. |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: cold weather killer.
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| Thanks for the warning, Ken. I've fried plants using metal stakes and rods with our intense sun and heat. It stands to reason the reverse would also hold true. I'm sorry you had dead canes from them. Do you think a length of old garden hose slipped over the rod and secured in place with ties might insulate enough to prevent the freeze damage? I prefer the strength of metal stakes as well as their increased longevity over wood. I can imagine wooden ones would last an even shorter time with your rains, heat and freezes. We balance it out by having the intensity of sun and heat, plus extreme winds, while you have the harsher cold, rain and more constant humidity. I wonder if the ties were secured around the cane, a short length (just enough to prevent the cane from being tied against the stake) then the loose ends of the tie secured around the stake might work? I do that when securing climbers to wrought iron fencing here and it's worked. Kim |
RE: cold weather killer.
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- Posted by TNY78 7a-East TN (My Page) on
Thu, Feb 16, 12 at 21:36
| Yikes! Thanks for the warning Ken. I use metal chicken wire posts a lot when I stake things, now I'll know not to do that! Never even thought about that! (I'm from Florida too...silly Floridians!) Tammy |
RE: cold weather killer.
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- Posted by maryl Z7 Okla. (My Page) on
Fri, Feb 17, 12 at 1:37
| I'd never really thought about using uncoated metal for stakes, but had it ever occured to me I now know not to do it from your experience. I use those plastic coated stakes you can get at Ace Hardware or the box stores. They last a pretty long time. I also have a collection of sturdy bamboo canes I mail ordered many years ago that seem to hold up pretty well. I like the Bamboo because you can cut it to length, but lately the kind you find at the box stores is not as solid and sturdy as what they used to sell years ago....Thanks for posting your experience. Makes us all better gardeners to hear from others OOPS!....Maryl |
RE: cold weather killer.
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| I'm glad the Steel Stakes types last well in OK for you, Maryl. They shed their plastic coating here in my garden in about 18 months, leaving a rusty, bare metal stake. But, the don't break like wooden ones do and never get termites, the bane of these mountains. Kim |
RE: cold weather killer.
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- Posted by seil z6b MI (My Page) on
Fri, Feb 17, 12 at 14:36
| Good info, Ken, thanks! I am puzzled though. I have several metal trellises, some steel and some aluminum, on my roses and I don't recall having that problem. I wonder why. I do use the plastic or bamboo ones for staking usually. But I know we've all talked about using re-bar for making climber supports. Interesting and now I'll have to check this out on mine! |
RE: cold weather killer.
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| I have a rose on a metal trellis and have used metal stakes frequently. Never noticed a problem. The stakes will be about the same temperature as the air unless it's sunny--then they will be warmer. Possibly Ken's damage was coincidental? |
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