@Marlorena Would you recommend pruning the rose prior to trimming the roots/reporting? My roses have actually grown rather large and I think I might require a trip to the local A&E with rose thorn injuries if I tried to to repot them as they are.. anyway I shall breath a sigh of relief for now knowing I don’t have to take on this task for the time being
I must say I have often considered patio roses as a lesser version of the ‘proper’ shrub roses but I’m starting to change my mind.. I do seriously hope I do not get tired of my existing roses.. I have two unknown patio roses which are without fragrance (that is a huge downside for me) and I was planning on swapping them out for two fragrant varieties.. I just couldn’t do it in the end.. all of them feel so dear to me and I couldn’t bear chucking any of them out.. so I just bought two more pots instead for the new ones ha!
@ed@edhelka I just love Gertrude Jekyll and you’ve got such a perfect bloom there. I also love the fact it’s fragrance wafts a little which is so lovely as one walks past. Mine are all still in tiny buds so I must be patient for now.
I’d treat it like the transplantation of any shrub. You reduce the top growth to:
a) make it easier to move without damaging it (or yourself!) b) to give a better balance between the roots and top growth so that plant can support itself with a reduced root system
Inevitably, and especially if you’re actively seeking to prune the roots, you will end up with less root than the plant had before and if you don’t cut it back a roughly equal proportion up top, then the roots will struggle to keep up with the water and feeding requirements of the plant. It will struggle, or even die!
Thats why Marlorena said its best to do this at the start of dormancy as that allows the most time for the roots to reestablish while there’s no active growth up above, before it all starts up again in Spring.
I believe that potted roses require a shorter haircut for their pruning than ones in the ground anyway.
They'll bounce back quicker the following year than if they'd been left at the same size.
I didn’t root prune last year, but I did remove Amber Queen from a 13-14” ceramic pot, so not huge, but goodness me it was hard work! Thought I’d end up having to smash it open. I tried to loosen the soil around the edges with a trowel first, laid the pot on its side and tried to remove the rose but couldn’t. Think I ended up having to hold it upside down!! She survived anyway.
I think in some ways it could be easier in a larger pot, my problem was as it was a smallish pot it was hard to get tools into the soil without touching the canes - in a large pot there’d be more wriggle room.
I think if I did it again, on a pot bound rose, I’d do more of a surgical extraction. Cutting into the soil and roots with something sharp all the way around the rose then towel or spade in as low as I can get it and then lift just the rose out.
I took Mortimer Sackler out of a pot, he’d only been in a year and it was a very large pot - that was easy. Dug down til I could see the roots, cleared some soil from around the sides and under, then just gently lifted out. It’s amazing how much root they’ve got after one year!
@celcius_kkw yes, just to agree with the above, you prune them down before this procedure.. but I would like to stress something here... the ritual of root pruning roses is best used for roses grown in smaller manageable pots that you intend to carry out this function either annually or bi-ennially.. peteS's small pot is suitable for that, and easier to deal with... Just a personal view, and I don't like to put people off their plans, but David Austin roses are not conducive to this rigid practice, as we all know they need time for the roots to develop which is why they really need pots with a 45cm minimum in the dimensions somewhere so they can be left alone for several years... really 5 years+ with top dressing.. Yes DA do it for their Chelsea Show roses, but that's a few days in May and warm greenhouse growing, and not for most home gardeners..
..the best roses for small 30cm/1 foot pots are hybrid teas, small floribundas and patio roses.. which grow fast, look good in their first year on our patios, and are able to be treated this way by cutting back and pruning top and bottom, effectively starting fresh each year... DA roses and other shrub roses are not for this treatment in my view.. which is why I recommend them in larger pots, which you see in DA's gallery of potted roses..
Yes my potted Desdemona is in the largest pot I was able to find. And it was tricky to find properly large ones. Most are either wide and shallow or narrow and deep. Couldnt find any suitable ones in gatden centres near me. Got mine from Homebase but B&M I've noticed do large pots too.
Bit plain but you could always paint them I've surrounded mine with smaller more attractive pots and that works!
Silas Marner bud showing its first flash of pink. the foliage on this one is gorgeous and 10+ buds on something which was planted only 8 weeks ago!
Roald Dahl looking green and healthy - would definitely recommend this rose to anyone.
Lady Emma Hamilton - this one was new in November so I’m keen to see how it does. It’s put on a ton of growth but only a couple of buds so far.
And finally, Warm Welcome. Another new addition - I love the miniature red foliage. Trying to tie in the canes around the obelisk as soon as they are long enough (but still flexible enough to do so!)
@jonathanmichell23 ...your roses are gorgeous... Silas is way ahead of mine, what have you been feeding it with... rocket booster?... I reckon you are a dab hand at growing roses...
@Marlorena I’m a bit shocked myself to be honest! They were all planted in John innes 3, got DA food in late March and then Tomatorite every 2 weeks.
It’s not all good news though - here’s three that are a year old next week and not looking quite so happy, despite the same treatment.
Princess Anne - was one of my healthiest last year but got off to a sickly start this year. Starting to perk up now though
Lady of Shallot - I so want this one to work. Just starting to bud. I’ve popped a stake in this morning as it’s starting lean already.
Graham Thomas - romped away and then got terrorised by green caterpillars hiding under the leaves. Think I’ve got them all now. I back onto a nature reserve so they all got lobbed over the fence!
Posts
I must say I have often considered patio roses as a lesser version of the ‘proper’ shrub roses but I’m starting to change my mind.. I do seriously hope I do not get tired of my existing roses.. I have two unknown patio roses which are without fragrance (that is a huge downside for me) and I was planning on swapping them out for two fragrant varieties.. I just couldn’t do it in the end.. all of them feel so dear to me and I couldn’t bear chucking any of them out.. so I just bought two more pots instead for the new ones ha!
I’d treat it like the transplantation of any shrub. You reduce the top growth to:
a) make it easier to move without damaging it (or yourself!)
b) to give a better balance between the roots and top growth so that plant can support itself with a reduced root system
Inevitably, and especially if you’re actively seeking to prune the roots, you will end up with less root than the plant had before and if you don’t cut it back a roughly equal proportion up top, then the roots will struggle to keep up with the water and feeding requirements of the plant. It will struggle, or even die!
Thats why Marlorena said its best to do this at the start of dormancy as that allows the most time for the roots to reestablish while there’s no active growth up above, before it all starts up again in Spring.
I believe that potted roses require a shorter haircut for their pruning than ones in the ground anyway.
They'll bounce back quicker the following year than if they'd been left at the same size.
I didn’t root prune last year, but I did remove Amber Queen from a 13-14” ceramic pot, so not huge, but goodness me it was hard work! Thought I’d end up having to smash it open. I tried to loosen the soil around the edges with a trowel first, laid the pot on its side and tried to remove the rose but couldn’t. Think I ended up having to hold it upside down!! She survived anyway.
I think in some ways it could be easier in a larger pot, my problem was as it was a smallish pot it was hard to get tools into the soil without touching the canes - in a large pot there’d be more wriggle room.
I think if I did it again, on a pot bound rose, I’d do more of a surgical extraction. Cutting into the soil and roots with something sharp all the way around the rose then towel or spade in as low as I can get it and then lift just the rose out.
I took Mortimer Sackler out of a pot, he’d only been in a year and it was a very large pot - that was easy. Dug down til I could see the roots, cleared some soil from around the sides and under, then just gently lifted out. It’s amazing how much root they’ve got after one year!
Just a personal view, and I don't like to put people off their plans, but David Austin roses are not conducive to this rigid practice, as we all know they need time for the roots to develop which is why they really need pots with a 45cm minimum in the dimensions somewhere so they can be left alone for several years... really 5 years+ with top dressing..
Yes DA do it for their Chelsea Show roses, but that's a few days in May and warm greenhouse growing, and not for most home gardeners..
..the best roses for small 30cm/1 foot pots are hybrid teas, small floribundas and patio roses.. which grow fast, look good in their first year on our patios, and are able to be treated this way by cutting back and pruning top and bottom, effectively starting fresh each year... DA roses and other shrub roses are not for this treatment in my view.. which is why I recommend them in larger pots, which you see in DA's gallery of potted roses..
Bit plain but you could always paint them I've surrounded mine with smaller more attractive pots and that works!
Silas Marner bud showing its first flash of pink. the foliage on this one is gorgeous and 10+ buds on something which was planted only 8 weeks ago!
Roald Dahl looking green and healthy - would definitely recommend this rose to anyone.
...your roses are gorgeous... Silas is way ahead of mine, what have you been feeding it with... rocket booster?...
I reckon you are a dab hand at growing roses...
Lady of Shallot - I so want this one to work. Just starting to bud. I’ve popped a stake in this morning as it’s starting lean already.