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What to do with a leaning tall rose

DedekindDedekind Posts: 172
edited May 2021 in Problem solving
Hello

We have a large rose which I think its a climbing rose. It has been here for a long time before we moved in. The last couple of summers it bloomed magnificently and it was very large, creating a ceiling like structure. It was getting a bit too large so I pruned it in winter to a few long stems. 

Fast forward to today, recently we replaced our fence and it seems the builders did something so now it looks very bad.. its over 2m high and leaning a lot. What can I do with it? I'd prefer having flowers this season but if not possible then I'm willing to sacrifice that for the health of the plant. 








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  • Lizzie27Lizzie27 Posts: 12,494
    Could you upload a photo please. Makes it s lot easier to advise. Click on the postcard icon above and follow the instructions.
    Thanks
    North East Somerset - Clay soil over limestone
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    How does the base look? Have the builders partly uprooted it during the work? If so, you can only firm it back down again, give it a good water to resettle it and some fresh mulch. You could stake it to try and persuade it into it’s former upright habit but not too close as you may stake through the roots, or tie it onto hooks on the fence. Gradually  tension the ties rather than forcing it back in place too brutally. Watch out for suckers as it may throw those out in protest. Yes a photo would help 😊 
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • DedekindDedekind Posts: 172
    Thanks I thought I uploaded a photo but seems it got erased with an edit I made. Will upload one later today!
  • DedekindDedekind Posts: 172
    edited May 2021
    Here it is.. not a nice shape I know! I also think I did not prune it correctly. Should I've hard pruned those thick stems? I did remove a couple. I think the base is as it has always been. It did have some stems to the right, it wasn't always so left-leaned. And some of the side shoots were on an old trellis.

  • FireFire Posts: 19,096

  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    Are the canes able to be trained? Can you ease them towards the right to tie in to the trellis without harming them?
  • DedekindDedekind Posts: 172
    Fire said:
    Are the canes able to be trained? Can you ease them towards the right to tie in to the trellis without harming them?

    Not really, they are very thick!
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    I would enjoy what it is this summer, then prune the three oldest, thickest canes right down in winter and start again with those, keeping the two greener, shorter canes. The three thick ones are crossing and rubbing which is not ideal. The new growth can then be trained more horizontally the other side. Hopefully you will get some new basals to train too. You will need to install some tension wires to train the new growth onto. Sounds drastic, but within a season or two you will have a more balanced rose.
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • DedekindDedekind Posts: 172
    Nollie said:
    I would enjoy what it is this summer, then prune the three oldest, thickest canes right down in winter and start again with those, keeping the two greener, shorter canes. The three thick ones are crossing and rubbing which is not ideal. The new growth can then be trained more horizontally the other side. Hopefully you will get some new basals to train too. You will need to install some tension wires to train the new growth onto. Sounds drastic, but within a season or two you will have a more balanced rose.

    Thanks! So you are saying that I should prune back hard to ground level those three thick canes? (when the time comes)
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    Dedekind said:
    Nollie said:
    I would enjoy what it is this summer, then prune the three oldest, thickest canes right down in winter and start again with those, keeping the two greener, shorter canes. The three thick ones are crossing and rubbing which is not ideal. The new growth can then be trained more horizontally the other side. Hopefully you will get some new basals to train too. You will need to install some tension wires to train the new growth onto. Sounds drastic, but within a season or two you will have a more balanced rose.

    Thanks! So you are saying that I should prune back hard to ground level those three thick canes? (when the time comes)
    Yes ... I would do exactly as @Nollie has advised  :)

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





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