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| I am trying to learn how to grow roses from cuttings. I have tried and tried, and failed. However . . . thankfully, I discovered this rose forum! Everyone has been so helpful-- thank you all so much for your advice and emails! You have encouraged me to keep going!
Now here is my problem . . . I think, from what one of you said, that I may have picked the wrong time of year to start rooting cuttings (This batch was started around a month and a half ago). I guess I didn't think about the time of year, since I have never had any cuttings survive. Whenever I trim my rose bush, I just try to root the cuttings I have taken off, just for practice. A few of these, though, seem like they might make it! I am so happy! I rooted them with rooting hormone, in pure perlite. They were not in any greenhouse/plastic bag. I rooted them outside in the shade, in plastic pots filled with perlite. Now, a few of the pots have roots growing out the bottom. I have never had this happen before! I am so glad they are thriving! My questions are 2:
Any advice would be appreciated! Thank you all for your gracious responses-- it is such a pleasure to learn from people who are so knowledgeable about roses, and are so helpful to newbies! Thank you! |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| A coldframe? Any gardening buddies with a greenhouse that has a bit of room? Indoors is difficult, they end up with spider mites. |
Here is a link that might be useful: cold frame
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| A very large plastic storage container can be used to make an impromptu cold frame, and if it's all not too big, you could haul it indoors for the duration of a hard freeze, maybe ... Jeri |
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| A very large plastic storage container can be used to make an impromptu cold frame, and if it's all not too big, you could haul it indoors for the duration of a hard freeze, maybe ... Jeri |
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| So you don't think they would live through the winter indoors, or outside in pots over the winter, if brought in at night? |
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| Definitely do NOT try to grow them indoors all winter. As for keeping them outdoors and bringing them in each evening . . . That could work (altho it sounds like a pain in the neck). You could also sink the pots up to their rims in a protected location in your garden and mulch heavily around them. Since you have a number of cuttings to get thru the winter, you might try using more than on strategy. Several years ago on this forum, I asked a question very similar to yours. Receiving a response from Jeri that was essentially identical to what she has posted here, I chose to follow her advice. I placed the closed container in a semi-protected location that received morning sun. Winter came early here that year, & temps were below normal for the remainder of the season. I assumed the roses were goners for sure, & completely forgot about them. I vividly recall how stunned I was when I happened upon the container in early spring & found that the plantlets had ALL survived, & were putting out new growth! If you decide to try Jeri's method, the container must be clear plastic. It's preferable (but not essential) for the lid to also be clear. I recently saw some great-looking clear storage containers in Target that would work very well. Try to find a container that is deep enough to accommodate your roses; otherwise, you can judiciously trim the plants to fit. Jeri's suggestion to bring the container indoors if a hard freeze is in the forecast is a good one. A garage or unheated basement would be the preferred location. Equally important, however, is the need to get the container back outdoors ASAP. Since that first success, I've over-wintered cuttings using Jeri's technique almost every year -- and with almost 100% success. You mentioned that some of your cuttings appear to have already developed good root systems. For those, I would probably keep them in the same (or only slightly larger)containers but replace the perlite with a porous potting medium. I often use packaged African Violet potting soil for newly rooted cuttings. Congrats on your rooting success, & good luck! And to Jeri: Thanks again for the tip!!! |
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- Posted by mad_gallica Z5 Eastern NY (My Page) on Mon, Oct 22, 12 at 16:13
| A fair amount is going to depend on the infamous where you are. If you are where *I* think you are, then they should be fine outside, because it doesn't really get cold there. At least not as I understand cold. But if you are somewhere else, then all bets are off, because other factors may come into play. |
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| I agree with those who caution against keeping them indoors . Spidermites thrive indoors. From what I understand roses build up their own natural antifreeze, but if the plants are kept warm too long in winter the antifreeze dissipates. I keep all my potted large and very small plants outdoors all winter. If it gets in the low teens I protect them briefly under my house or in my house, preferably in an unheated area. But most of the time I let them endure some very hard freezes. I do lose some small plants during winter but almost every year I have pots of rooted cuttings outside that I didn't pot up, and most of the time those little cuttings make it through the entire winter, snow, ice, wind, and cold. I'm in zone 7. I'd avoid a potting soil that stays too wet. I used a different brand one year that stayed wet all winter and I lost many more plants due to it I think. I like Miracle Grow potting soil with moisture control and food in it. I think fresh new growth is a worry going into winter but just don't worry too much. Now you can root them, you will probably do so earlier next spring, and this can be a good learning experience. Sometimes it seems that there's some difficulty first learning to root them, but once you do it, you've got it so there will be more little babies. If you pot these up be careful..the early white roots are very fragile. Oh, I move all my small plants to the warm side of my house in winter and that seems to protect them a lot. |
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| Jaxondel is right. Don't bring them inside or they'll most probably die. Roses never do well inside because no human would like living in the conditions roses prefer, warm, humid and bright. You have to turn your home literally into a greenhouse to make them happy. Pot them up and let them go dormant outside. Then either put them in an unheated garage for the winter, use Jeri's container method or you can sink the pots in the ground. My only problem with bringing the container inside at night is that it only takes one missed night to blow the whole deal. It's better to find a secure, protected place where you can just leave it be all winter. And if they are in a garage or container you need to water them a little bit about once a month throughout the winter. Dehydration is a big part of what kills roses over the winter. If they're buried in the ground they'll get rain and snow but if they're inside a garage or a container with a tight lid they'll need occasional watering. I also use a small free standing greenhouse to winter my seedlings and cuttings in. They're fairly inexpensive (I think mine was around $30.00 at ACE Hardware) and easy to find a spot for. I keep mine against the back wall of the house so it gets good light all winter. But even in there I need to water them once in while all winter. |
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- Posted by donaldvancouver cool wet z8 (My Page) on Thu, Oct 25, 12 at 12:04
| I have wintered roses indoors by keeping them in a very bright south window and spraying them pretty much weekly with soap, as they are spider mite magnets. It is far from ideal but I had cuttings like yours, recently rooted, and I didn't think they'd ever make it through a Z3 winter. They made it through fine. I needed to prune them a lot as they got leggy. If you're in zone 6-7 it's much more likely they'd be ok outdoors. |
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