UK: Hi, we planted this Gertrude Jeckyll - English climbing rose - under an obelisk by doorway a couple of years ago. It has become very tall and gangly. We’ve never pruned and think it’s in need of a hard prune. Any tips? Thank you 🙏 🌹
It rather depends on how tall you want her to be. Usually for a shrub rose you prune the top third off, and cut out dead stems, stems that rub each other or cross over in the middle and little spindly stems. Prune with a slanting cut just above a bud or a bud notch on the stem.
Gertrude Jeckyll is vigorous and often wants to be a climber, comes in a climbing version too. If you want her shorter then prune her shorter.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
GJ is very vigorous (and thorny). It can be grown as a shrub or climber. I have 4, and last year some of the shoots produced reached 7ft in one season!
To get flowers all the way up your obelisk, the stems need to be wound around the obelisk like a spiral. That will cause flower buds to grow all along the stem. Yous is just reaching for the sky, so you'll end up with just flowers at the top.
If Marlorean sees the post, she will be able to give exact advice, but I'd suggest cutting it down to about 2ft then train the new shoots around the obelisk. The more horizontal the stems, the more flower buds will grow.
At this time of year it would be good to give it a feed (blood,fish and bone or rose fertilizer) and a mulch of rotted manure or compost.
Billericay - Essex
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
And to add to the above, if you want her to be a climber you'll need a much larger obelisk because of its vigour. But as it's in front of a window maybe worth removing the obelisk and growing her as a large bush, maybe worth pegging the long new growth to the ground to make a more voluptuous shape would be an option.
I don't think I had woken up properly this morning! ☺️ My GJ was a shrub and I assumed yours was too as she's on an obelisk. Just realised yours is a climber. An obelisk isn't really big enough but you may get away with it if you do what @Pete.8 said and train the main canes around the obelisk in a spiral. Then you prune the side shoots off the main stems to 2 - 4 buds, whuch is how you prune a climber.
If you have wall to the side of the window it would be better to plant her against the wall and train her sideways.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
@fizzyliz, In my experience, GJ has thick, very thorny canes which are not amenable to being grown horizontally. There is, I believe, no difference between the 'climbing' version and the bush version, that's basically a marketing ploy, it's the same plant. It's natural habit is vigorous and upright but can be kept shorter if desired by quite brutal pruning down to about 2 ft in late winter/early spring. It doesn't need an obelisk which in any event makes pruning at the base awkward.
Just read back and realized I'm just repeating @Pete.8 's good advice above, Apologies Pete!
@Lizzie27@Busy-Lizzie@Pete.8@amancalledgeorge thank you all for the advice. we really wanted the obelisk there as a feature and it said suitable for obelisk on the website. Wanted something fragrant by doorway too. Starting to wonder if we need to remove her and put something else in that spot? Hmmmmmmmm.
Following with interest - my Gertrude was planted the year before last, intended to climb over an arch. Last year I trained its longest shoot towards the arch. Hoping for more of a climb this year.
You could find a better place for the Gertrude Jeckyll and choose a different rose for the obelisk, such as a small patio rambler. Rambling roses have more supple canes which are easier to wind around an obelisk. There is one which is repeat flowering, fragrant and not too fussy as to position, called Purple Skyliner. I've seen it growing in Peter Beales Classic Roses garden and was so impressed I've bought one. https://www.classicroses.co.uk/roses/purple-skyliner-rambling-rose.html
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
Posts
Gertrude Jeckyll is vigorous and often wants to be a climber, comes in a climbing version too. If you want her shorter then prune her shorter.
It can be grown as a shrub or climber.
I have 4, and last year some of the shoots produced reached 7ft in one season!
To get flowers all the way up your obelisk, the stems need to be wound around the obelisk like a spiral. That will cause flower buds to grow all along the stem.
Yous is just reaching for the sky, so you'll end up with just flowers at the top.
If Marlorean sees the post, she will be able to give exact advice, but I'd suggest cutting it down to about 2ft then train the new shoots around the obelisk. The more horizontal the stems, the more flower buds will grow.
At this time of year it would be good to give it a feed (blood,fish and bone or rose fertilizer) and a mulch of rotted manure or compost.
Billericay - Essex
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
If you have wall to the side of the window it would be better to plant her against the wall and train her sideways.
Just read back and realized I'm just repeating @Pete.8 's good advice above, Apologies Pete!
thank you all for the advice.
we really wanted the obelisk there as a feature and it said suitable for obelisk on the website. Wanted something fragrant by doorway too. Starting to wonder if we need to remove her and put something else in that spot? Hmmmmmmmm.
https://www.classicroses.co.uk/roses/purple-skyliner-rambling-rose.html