22,795 Garden Web Discussions | Roses
Well, that's the thing. John Walden visited my garden shortly after PT was released. I asked him why they foisted such a dawg on the public. His response was, "if you think it's bad NOW, you should have seen it before we 'cleaned it up'. " He said J&P bought Armstrong Roses just to get their patents as things like Double Delight were still under patent. He also said their stock was "so badly virused, it had to be burned in the fields". From what John said, PT IS RMV free, or was when released. He also said there was "a better one in the pipeline". It was released. Remember Tigress? Yeah, very few others do, either. It was stronger but no "better". Fortuniana MIGHT improve it, but it just is not a decent plant.
We have so much poison ivy here that preschoolers can accurately identify it! Great idea, though! And I think my yard is a favored pass - through bcs for some bizarre horticultural reason, my wild area is poison ivy-free and blackberry free! I tried encouraging the holly back there to into the "bald" spits, but it just won't. Holly has a mind of its own, preferring to grow up under my screened porch and garage wall ; )
The wild blackberries refuse to be managed, too. Have tried to get them to grow up the paths, but to no avail. And they are fierce! I usually look like I have been in a multi cat fight after tangling with those thorny beasts.
Am hoping to get a former Youth Group kid to dig up a bit on the hill before he leaves for college, and then supplement with Christopher's wheelbarrow recipe and get a couple of Darlow's Enigma in before a couple of weeks are out. I am hoping that will at least give me an idea if this will work. I'm planning on putting tomato cages over the young plants to prevent trampling. Have an email into Long Ago to see if she has any DE. It's a 4hr drive, but might be better than stressing a plant by shipping it in August heat.
After much trial and error, I strongly recommend against playing games with marginally hardy climbers. They can't understand the plan, and insist on messing up. It is a much better idea to just plant a rose that will be the size you want in your climate. There definitely exist roses that will get big in zone 4, they just need a larger, more substantial structure than there is room for on the house. They also don't tend to be easily trained, so need more space to spread out than you might think.
Thanks for the feedback so far. A pillar could be nice- perhaps something I could put on a nice looking obelisk as a focal point? The feedback has been very helpful. The last thing I want is to have a large empty trellis with a rose that can't grow big enough to fill it, or a completely overwhelmed trellis with a rose that is out of control!
There are various approaches to roses that grow like that.
1. Pruning to stand up--cut long canes back to 3' or less. Cut the subsequent laterals back to 2 or 3 leaves after blooming or next spring. Continue pruning like this in spring and after the first flush until, after a few years, the rose is heavily branched and able to support itself. This is the classic method.
2. Natural arching--if you have 7' width available--heavy blooms will pull the tall canes over, or you can peg them to the ground to spread them out. The rose will bloom on laterals along the canes. Cut these laterals back to 1 or 2 leaves after blooming. Optionally, prune some laterals as in #1 to branch and fill in the center. Choose strong laterals from near the center.
3. Self-pegging--bend long flexible canes in a hoop and tie the tip to the base of the cane. Several laterals will break from each cane around the top of the arch. Then proceed as in #1. This is the fastest way to develop a dense, bushy plant. Some people object to the "origami" look.
Thanks michael. Method number one sounds like what I would like. I've tried pegging and it looks wonderful for a year but it's to much of a mess to redo it every year so I think method one is the way to go. Thanks so much for the advice. If anyone else has this rose do you have any advice for making it happy
I don't quite agree that being in a corner like that will mean possibly black spot issues. There can still be lots of air flow even in that area. My own Eden is a band I planted in June so I can't speak specifically regarding how it will perform there.
Jeri, I guess that's why we have to cut off the old canes every 3-5 years. I learned this lesson 2 months ago. My rambler-Blushing lucy's 3 main old canes all went together, they were about 7-8? yrs old, now I have nothing wrapping around the porch, really missed that.......training the new canes now.
I think that it is really valuable to hear about growing roses in different climates. The key is that whoever is posting explain where they are, and the climate they garden in, and DO NOT try and give specific advice to those who garden in completely different climates. I try to share what certain roses do in my garden, because it might be interesting, but try always to warn that I have no idea what they might do in different conditions.
Warm vs Cold is way too simplistic - the warm climate I garden in in CA is totally different from places in the South, for instance, where summers are wet and humid. We do not have hardly any blackspot "pressure", so I will not keep a rose which gets it - I have over 100 roses which do not get it, so why would I keep one that does? Also rust - I only have 3 roses which get rust sometimes, and those are "family heirloom" HTs from the mid 20th century. I keep them because they were planted by my DH's grandfather when they were first introduced, and I like the flowers. However, they live together in huge pots on the patio, where I can keep an eye on them and deal with the rust when it shows up immediately.
I have a friend who has a summer home in Maine. She is able to grow several "once bloomers" I really like. It does not matter that they only bloom once for 6-8 weeks, because that is about the extent of her growing season! I personally would not like that.
Here we get two Springs with new growth and renewal of the plants each year. One is the same season everyone else gets Spring, except earlier - say, March/April. The other is in the Fall when the rain (god willing) comes back. That is really exciting, because many plants have been dormant over the long, hot, dry summer. They come back to life quickly - new growth, new blooms, etc. It is our main planting season. We plant in the Fall so that the new baby plants will have time to grow roots during the mild and wet (usually) winter. So, everyplace is different, and I think it is really good that, being human, we get used to whatever situation we are in, and decide it is the best one! Makes for more happy gardeners.
Jackie
Actually I would think that it is common sense to note that all of us are from all walks of life and from diverse gardening zones. Most people (myself included) give advice and always add that it is based on our experiences in our gardening zone. We may not always say it because it is just common sense. I agree that the more knowledge people share with each other the better it is. It is very interesting for me to read what people's experiences are for growing the same rose.
I live in the Greater Toronto Region and I have grown this rose for almost 20 years now. It is susceptible to bs here but not worst than most other roses. It is fairly healthy and robust over here except late summer bs. It is a beautiful rose and dependable. However, I got my plant many years ago and I can't really comment on recent ones since it is known that overtime some variety may "degenerate" like Peace for example. I've read that older bushes of Peace are taller than later ones.
Perhaps it's more in your choice of roses. Hybrid Teas are generally the fussiest of all roses, but those who grow them put up with the extra work for the sake of their show-worthy blooms. There are many other types of roses that do great without all the coddling. I have about 100 roses, but only about 5 or 6 are Hybrid Teas. See my inventory in the link below.
https://www.helpmefind.com/gardening/l.php?l=3.23781&tab=2&frmt=1&scp=0&order=16&qn=0&qc=62
:-)
~Christopher
Definitely your choice of roses. HTs are too fussy to survive here without a lot of help. There is a big learning curve before people can balance between enough to help, and too much to hurt. With hardier, more disease resistant roses, usually the most helpful advice is along the lines of 'put down the chemicals, and step away from the roses'. Just leave them alone, and do absolutely nothing, and they will take care of themselves.
Patty, I always mulch & used plenty (cedar chips). I was looking at it the other day & thought .....it seems a lot less. I'm beginning to wonder if the chipmunks are taking off with it to store for their winter nests..jk. I was wondering if I should buy a few bags more to add to the existing?
Sounds like a dream vacation. Beautiful pictures!
Thanks - just beautiful. In my early 20's I stayed at Sissinghurst. How I wish I could relive that experience since becoming a gardener.