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Discussion id : 14-777 most recent 1 NOV 06 HIDE POSTS

Initial post 30 OCT 06 by John Dean

My wife bought six "miniature" roses from Safeway for cernterpieces. After the event, I decided to transplant them into larger containers. When I took them out of the original containers, I found that they weren't really one plant with one root system but each small pot had six or more individual stems with its own root system. We were successful in trnasplanting them, have been enjoying them all summer, cutting back the old blooms and experiencing new growth. Some of them don't seem to be actual miniatures because they've shot up 24" in some cases. We live in northeren California, near the ocean, and I was wondering what would be the best way to get them through the winter. Do I need to put them in a shed, cover them, feed them . . . what?

- John

Reply #1 of 4 posted 31 OCT 06 by Anonymous-97434

John, how severe are your winters? If you seldom drop into the twenty degree zones for any lenght of time, you don't really have to do anything other than just make sure they have good drainage and are regularly watered. Those miniature roses are tougher than you think. They'll withstand very low temperatures, just as larger roses will, without major damage. What do you do with your other, more "traditional" roses, to carry them through the winter? Kim

Reply #2 of 4 posted 1 NOV 06 by Unregistered Guest

Kim, Right now the miniature roses are in 10" pots and we're thinking about putting them in the ground next Spring. Our other "traditional" roses are in the ground and seem to do just fine. We seldom get temperatures in the 20's - we're only about 20 miles from the ocean and the marine influence keeps the temperature fairly temperate. Sure appreciate the response. I feel much better now that I have some confidence about not having to take heroic measures to protect the miniatures. John

Reply #3 of 4 posted 1 NOV 06 by HMF supporting member

RoseBlush

John........

I can confirm that you don't need to do any major winter protection with your miniature roses. I live in the mountains in northern California, and it gets down into the 20s almost every night during the winter months. I have had nearly 100 miniature roses in nursery cans outside for three winters. The first winter, I experimented with clustering the pots and putting straw between the pots to create a bigger mass so that the pots would not freeze. The second winter, I had injuries to both hands and could not do the same amount of work and just clustered the pots. Both winters, the roses came through just fine.

The major difference, other than night temps, is that I planted my roses in much larger containers.

Miniature roses are very tough, so I am sure your plants will over-winter just fine. In fact, if you wanted to plant them now instead of next spring, I am sure they would get busy growing more roots and put out a great flush for you next spring.

Smiles,

Lyn, helpmefind.com

Reply #4 of 4 posted 1 NOV 06 by Anonymous-97434

Hi, John. Well, now you have it. You're all set! Congratulations. Kim	REPLY

Discussion id : 14-500 most recent 22 OCT 06 SHOW ALL

Initial post 15 OCT 06 by christie

Reply #1 of 3 posted 18 OCT 06 by Wendy C

When the rose is dormant it is dug up and the soil removed from the roots. Big suppliers then store them in a climate controlled area. Is there a specific reason you asked?	REPLY

Reply #2 of 3 posted 22 OCT 06 by christie

hi wendy:

a number of reasons -

1. until this year, almost all of my roses, now numbering ~175, have been small and easy to winterize. also, they were somewhat localized. however, this year many achieved substantial size. additionally, i have spread them out over some distance. i also have several that are extremely marginal, but in past years have been easy to protect. clearly, the more cane that survives winter conditions, the better. but, so many roses,(altho, never enough), so little time (and money).

2. i had started roses for friends and in planning to send them on, wondered if it was at all feasable for an individual to achieve this condition with any degree of success.

3. curiosity, which really brings me back to 1 - 2, how to achieve dormancy and what temperature requirements and conditions would have to be maintained.

just trying to think of different options i guess.

thanks, christie

Reply #3 of 3 posted 22 OCT 06 by Wendy C

Roses generally go dormant after the first killing frost. The type of frost which turns everything black. Once they are dormant you can safely lift them. They will stay dormant until temperatures raise above between 35-40 degrees.

I had some stored in cardboard cartons in the garage one year and they were fine. The roots were wrapped in damp burlap (newspaper works too) to keep them from drying out. We had moved in November and I didn't have time to plant them until Spring.

Depending on what zone you are in Winterizing roses doesn't have to be a costly prospect. I'm on the edge of zones 5 & 6. I don't prune until Spring and I mound them with straw from the feed store. Most Winters they are fine. If you are colder get dirt from another part of the yard and mound them. Labor intensive, but not costly.

So yes you can bare root roses to send to your friends. If your friends are out of state please be aware there are laws which restrict transporting plant material into some states. It's worth looking into before you ship.

Discussion id : 14-476 most recent 13 OCT 06 HIDE POSTS

Initial post 13 OCT 06 by Bill Raimond

I'm looking for a source for "Root Zone" , "Cloud Cover" or "Moisturin" antitranspirants. In particular I'm very interested in "Moisturin" since its a foliar spray, and not a drench. If anyone has used any of these products please advise-- I'm looking for a replacement for “Frost Proof”. If anyone has used "Moisturin" I would like to know how they liked or disliked the product. I'm trying to get ready for the upcoming bad weather.

Thank you Bill

Discussion id : 10-454 most recent 22 OCT 06 SHOW ALL

Initial post 6 NOV 05 by Anonymous-797

Reply #1 of 6 posted 22 APR 06 by William

Reply #2 of 6 posted 8 OCT 06 by Syed Zaidi

Reply #3 of 6 posted 19 OCT 06 by William

Your climate does not require you to prune except to keep your roses looking neat. I would prune hard (meaning about 1 1/2 ft from the ground) in the spring, at least once during the summer and again in early fall. This may seem harsh but when you give them a good pruning providing they had sufficient fertilizer they will come back very profusely.	REPLY

Reply #4 of 6 posted 19 OCT 06 by Mel Hulse

Hi Syed,

You don't say what classes of roses you have and pruning techniques vary by class. Assuming you are talking about Hybrid Teas and Floribundas, In Northern California, we don't advise sever pruning. In general, we remove only the top third of each of the longer canes. If yours is a rose that produces a lot of new canes from the base (basal canes), you can remove the very oldest ones when you have more than 7.

It is good if after that, you strip all the leaves off and remove any under the rose on the ground. This reduces overwintering of fungus spores.

William's drastic pruning advice is what one would tell exhibitors who want a few very large blooms to show. My advice will give you much more bloom and longer living roses.

As to when to prune in this are where many roses never go dormant, they are at their lowest level of activity in late December and early January. Christmas week is a good time.
Mel Hulse
Volunteer Director
San Jose Heritage Rose Garden

Reply #5 of 6 posted 19 OCT 06 by HMF supporting member

RoseBlush

Syed

The San Jose Heritage Rose Garden is a wonderful rose garden. What Mel forgot to say in his post is that the garden needs volunteers to come to garden on work days (Wednesday and/or Saturday mornings) to help prune the roses in the garden. Mel and other volunteers help train the new volunteers on how to prune and care for roses. If you have time, I suggest you visit the garden on one of their workdays dedicated to pruning. You'll be amazed at how much you'll learn and you will meet some great people who love growing roses.

Smiles,

Lyn, helpmefind.com

Reply #6 of 6 posted 22 OCT 06 by Wendy C

When I lived in Sunnyvale I pruned my roses in February.

I didn't hard prune them just took out the twiggy stuff and dead wood. This is for modern roses Hybrid Teas, Floribundas and the like.

If you have Old Garden Roses I would only remove the dead wood and wait to prune them until after they bloom.. and then just enough to make them look good. OGR's in general don't like to be pruned.

I would suggest you check with your local Rose Society. Or ask a neighbor who has nice roses. Each area is different.