PRUNING AND PROPAGATING
OF all the many toils and anxieties that beset the path of the amateur
rosarian, I think we may safely say pruning is the chief. The rules to
be observed are few. The idiosyncrasies of each rose are many. And the
demands upon one's own judgment and initiative are constant.
Two things have to be considered before we begin the puzzling task. Are
we growing our roses for exhibition, or at all events for a very few
very perfect blooms? Or are we growing them for quantity, for mere
enjoyment, on the "cut and come again" principle, which enables one not
only to fill the house without robbing the garden, but to fill the hands
of every one who comes into the garden and looks at the masses of
blossom with longing eyes?
As I do not exhibit, the second plan is the one I have studied most
closely. For the other I must refer my readers to my friend the Rev. F.
Page-Roberts' valuable notes, on how to grow and show roses in Chapter
XI.
=When to prune.=--The old-fashioned plan of pruning all roses in the
autumn has now been, happily for their well-being, given up in England.
It was owing to this that many of the earlier varieties of Tea roses,
and even some of the Bourbons and Hybrid Perpetuals, were considered 50
years ago too "tender" to plant freely out of doors.
Pruning now begins in February, and goes on through March and April.
In February we begin to prune the _Rugosas_; _Boursaults_;
_Sempervirens_; and _Ayrshires_.
In February and early March, the _Provence_; _Moss_; _miniature
Provence_; many of the Species, such as _Alpina_, _Moschata_, and
_Bracteata_, and their hybrids.
In early March the _Gallica_; _Damask_; _Alba_; _Hybrid Chinas_; and
_Sweet Briars_. To be followed by _Hybrid Bourbons_; _Hybrid Noisettes_
and _Musks_; _Austrian_ and _Scotch Briars_; _Multifloras_; _Ramblers_;
_Wichuraianas_; _Chinas_; _Dijon Teas_; _dwarf Polyanthas_; and dwarf
and standard _Hybrid Perpetuals_ and _Hybrid Teas_.
Climbing varieties of _Noisettes_, _Teas_, _Hybrid Teas_, and _Hybrid
Perpetuals_, may be thinned out, if necessary, after flowering in
summer. But they must be pruned in March.
In April the _Teas_ and _Noisettes_, both dwarf and standard, and the
_Banksian roses_ are pruned.
=How to prune.=--This is a much-disputed subject among rose growers, and
as authorities differ widely with regard to it, some advocating hard
pruning, and others just as strongly swearing by light pruning, so do
they differ as to the instrument to be used. The pruning knife is most
generally recommended; while the secateur, so universally in use on the
Continent, is advised merely for the cutting of dead wood. But the knife
has its disadvantages, especially in the hands of a woman. For not only
may one get an ugly cut with it: but even in a man's hands I have seen
the plant pulled about more than I like, in cutting a tough branch. I am
therefore delighted to find that so great an authority as the Rev. J. H.
Pemberton advocates the use of the secateur for _all_ pruning, as for
many years I have used nothing else. The amount of time and strength it
saves one is infinite, to say nothing of the comfort of so handy a
weapon.
There are, however, secateurs and secateurs--and a poor one is worse
than useless. Its blades must be as sharp as a razor, and so accurately
set that they make a perfectly clean cut right through, without pinching
the branch or tearing the bark. In choosing one, it is well to try it on
a sheet of tissue paper. If it cuts the paper like a sharp pair of
scissors, it is all right. But if it curls the paper round the blade,
instead of making a clean cut, it is to be avoided. After trying many
different makes, I have found that the _Secateur Montreuil_, which I
have now procured for several years from MM. Vilmorin, Andrieux et Cie.,
4, Quai de la Megisserie, Paris, is far the best I can get. It costs 8
francs, and is made in three sizes.
As to hard-and-fast rules in pruning, there are but two.
[Illustration: FIG. 2_a._--Rosebush requiring light pruning--unpruned.]
[Illustration: FIG. 2_b._--Rosebush requiring light pruning--pruned.]
[Illustration: 1.--ROSE REQUIRING MODERATE PRUNING. UNPRUNED.]
[Illustration: 1.--ROSE REQUIRING MODERATE PRUNING. PRUNED.]
1. Prune weak-growing roses much harder than strong-growing roses. As
the object of pruning is to throw the sap into the young shoots which
will start from the dormant buds or "eyes," in order to make them
flower, a weak-growing rose must be pruned hard so as to concentrate all
the vigour of the plant on the few dormant buds we leave. While if we
prune a strong-growing rose very hard we only make it throw yet longer
shoots, which soon get out of all bounds, and run to wood and not to
blossom.
2. Always prune to a dormant bud which points outwards. This is done to
keep the centre of the plant comparatively free, by preventing the
shoots crossing and choking each other.
In pruning we have to keep two objects ever in view. In the first place
we must prune in order to get rid of all dead wood, and weak, unripe and
useless shoots, thus enabling the young healthy wood to take their
place. And secondly we must prune so as to keep the plant in good shape
and good health, by cutting back the strong and healthy wood we leave to
a suitable length.
If the winter has been mild, we shall find many buds on the upper part
of strong shoots of last year's growth, which are already bursting into
leaf and even showing a flower bud. And it seems so brutal to destroy
these, that I know one is often tempted to leave some to take their
chance, instead of hardening one's heart and sternly cutting down to
just above the first dormant bud. But when the plants really start in
May, we pay for our tender-hearted folly by blind unhealthy shoots which
only disfigure the plant, while the real flower shoots are starting
below and cannot get up to the light and air. Or, again, the unpruned
shoot turns black and begins to die back, and we have to cut it down
much further than would have been necessary had we pruned it at the
right moment.
In pruning, however, let the amateur remember that until he has gained
considerable experience in the matter, it is far safer to prune too
lightly than to prune in excess. And I must repeat that no rules will
really help us, unless we study the special nature and idiosyncrasy of
each individual plant, exactly as we study the character of the child we
have to deal with.
With climbing summer-flowering roses very little pruning at all is
required, except slightly shortening the ends of the long rambling
shoots, cutting out all the dead wood, and cutting some of the old
flowering shoots which are worn out, down to the base.
It must be remembered that Ramblers, Noisettes, and other climbing roses
bear their flowers on the laterals of the long shoots of the former
year. While the Banksias, some of the Multifloras such as _Aglaia_, and
that beautiful rose _Fortune's Yellow_, only flower on the sub-laterals,
_i.e._ on wood three years old. If therefore these shoots are cut back
too hard the plant does not flower.
One of the finest specimens of _Crimson Rambler_ I have ever seen, was
ruined for several years by an ignorant person who carefully and
triumphantly cut out all the long shoots of the former year, which he
considered mere "sucker rods." And then he was surprised at the plant
bearing no flowers.
A certain amount of very useful minor pruning can be carried on all
through the summer, by cutting out bits of old wood when they have
flowered, if we see that they have no young shoots on which to bear a
second crop later on. For instance when the newer China roses, such as
_Laurette Messimy_, are in full bloom, we often find a bit of one of
last year's growths which has borne one or two of the earliest flowers
and now merely blocks up the young tender shoots full of buds. This is
the time to cut it out, instead of allowing it to absorb part of the
strength which should go to the new wood.
=Cutting off dead blooms.=--Though to some it may seem a small matter,
much good may also be done to our plants through the summer by the way
we remove dead flowers. Instead of merely snapping off each blossom
between thumb and finger, it is better to do a little very mild pruning,
by cutting each dead blossom off just above the second leaf below it.
This greatly promotes the autumn blooming of the plants, and keeps them
in good shape. It is a little more trouble, but amply repays us in the
end.
The precise moment of setting to work must depend to some extent on the
weather. Of course we cannot begin in a heavy frost, as that would be
fatal to the plants. Nor can I go as far as Mr. Pemberton, who with
delightful enthusiasm advises us to choose a cold day with north-east
wind and occasional sleet showers. That is too complete a counsel of
perfection for most mortals; for however much they love their roses,
they equally dread pneumonia for themselves. But certainly a cool,
overcast day is best, as there is less chance of the wood bleeding than
in mild, soft weather.
Well prepared, therefore, secateur in hand, and knife in pocket in case
of need, with strong gloves and old clothes, and if a woman, with a
housemaid's kneeling pad to kneel on so as to get more easily at the
dwarf plants--for pruning is tiring work in any case, and it is well to
save extra fatigue and backache--we now begin on a late February day,
with
=Rugosa= Roses.--These need little pruning beyond cutting out the dead
wood, and cutting back some of the old wood almost to the base, when it
will throw up fresh shoots which will bloom late. The suckers which
these roses throw up in numbers, may be cut back to three or four feet
to form a thick bush.
=Ayrshires= and =Sempervirens=.--Thin out slightly and cut out dead
wood--no further pruning is needed.
=Boursaults= need no thinning. The flowers are borne on the laterals of
last year's long shoots, which may be left six to ten feet long.
The =Species= and most of their hybrids need no pruning beyond cutting
out dead wood, and occasionally cutting the young base shoots back to
hard, well-ripened wood, when the tips are touched by frost.
=Provence= and =Moss= Roses.--Cut out old wood; thin out old shoots, and
out back the young base shoots and laterals to four or six eyes. Some of
the strong-growing moss roses may be left taller. The =Perpetual Moss=
roses are pruned as hybrid perpetuals for garden decoration.
=Miniature Provence.=--Keep well pruned to within six inches of the
ground, and thin out the centre.
=Gallica= and =Damask=.--Prune lightly. The strong growers may be kept
as tall bushes or pillars. The dwarf, such as _Red Damask_, and _Rosa
Mundi_ cut back to three feet. Keep the best one- and two-year-old
shoots and laterals, and thin out old and weak wood.
=Alba.=--Grow as bushes or pillars five to six feet high, cutting out
weak wood, leaving all the laterals on which the flowers are borne,
about eight inches to one foot.
=Hybrid Chinas=, such as _Charles Lawson_, _Coupe d'Hebe_ and _Madame
Plantier_, should be grown as bushy pillars, leaving the shoots six feet
long. Shorten the laterals on old wood to three or four eyes. _Blairii
No. 2_ should hardly be touched.
=Sweet Briars.=--Cut out all weak wood and cut old and naked shoots down
to the ground. The Common Sweet Briar should be grown about four feet
high. The Penzance Briars make enormous base shoots, which may be
shortened to ten feet or less according to one's requirements, and some
of the strong laterals of last year shortened back. _Lord_ and _Lady
Penzance_, from their Austrian briar blood, are much less vigorous, and
need far less pruning, only cutting out dead wood. When the Penzance and
Common Sweet Briars are grown as hedges, the base is apt to get bare,
and some of the long shoots must be laid down to keep it clothed, while
the rest are pruned much shorter.
=Hybrid Bourbons.=--Prune the laterals lightly, and leave the best of
the base shoots.
=Hybrid Noisettes= and =Musks=.--Thin out old wood and tie in young
shoots.
=Austrian Briars.=--Only cut out dead wood. _Soleil d'Or_, a hybrid,
flowers on the young wood, and the shoots may be pruned back to two
feet.
=Scotch Briars.=--No pruning is needed, except cutting out old and dead
wood and shortening back some of the numerous suckers.
=Climbing Multifloras= need little pruning. When grown as pillars or on
screens they are apt to get bare at the base. Therefore it is well to
cut some of the weaker young shoots back to two or three feet to clothe
the base, leaving the strong ones their full length. With _Crimson
Rambler_ and its class, cut out some of the old wood to make room for
the young shoots and shorten any weak laterals: but leave most of the
strong ones intact, and do not touch the long base shoots of the last
year.
=Wichuraianas.=--Only cut out old and dead wood. I have seen a beautiful
effect produced with _Dorothy Perkins_ by cutting out _all_ the old wood
in the autumn, and training the long young shoots over wire frames
two-and-a-half feet wide, forming low arches about a yard from the
ground in the centre. The mass of flower shoots standing erect on these
frames makes a most strikingly beautiful object. The Wichuraianas also
form very lovely weeping standards on eight-feet stems. And for tall
pillars and fountain roses they are unequalled.
=Chinas.=--The old _Blush_ and _Cramoisie Superieure_ should only be
thinned. The newer kinds, such as _Mme. Eugene Resal_, _Laurette
Messimy_, etc., may be cut back to a few eyes from the ground.
=Bourbons.=--Prune lightly, growing as bold bushes or standards; except
_Hermosa_, which may be pruned back to form a dwarf, spreading, two-feet
bush; while _Mrs. Bosanquet_ is treated like the Chinas.
=Noisettes= are of two types. The strong growers need hardly any
pruning, except _Marechal Niel_, which must have all cankered and weak
shoots removed after it has flowered. _Lamarque_, _Fortune's Yellow_
(which must not be pruned at all), and _Jaune Desprez_ need a wall; and
_Celine Forestier_ prefers one.
The other type, such as _L'Ideal_ and _William Allen Richardson_, may be
pruned fairly close, by cutting back the laterals to a few eyes. All
Noisettes bear their flowers on the laterals; therefore these should be
preserved as much as possible.
=Dijon Teas.=--These are the climbing and vigorous _Gloire de Dijon_
and its descendants and allies, such as _Belle Lyonnaise_, _Francois
Crousse_, _Duchesse d'Auerstadt_, _Mme. Berard_, etc. They are all apt
to get bare below. Therefore, while some of the strong shoots from the
base are left almost their full length, others must be cut back, some to
two or three feet, others to four or five feet, in order to keep the
whole surface of the wall, arch, or pillar clothed evenly. The laterals
may be pruned on the same plan. Old worn out wood should be occasionally
cut down to the base to make it start afresh, when the first flowering
is over.
=Banksia Roses.=--These need no pruning except in the case of a very old
plant, when a shoot that shows weakness may be cut down to the base in
April. But I have pointed out in Chapter IV that the Banksias bear their
flowers on the sub-laterals of the third year. Therefore, for three
years they must not be touched with the knife, and the shoots merely
tied in evenly over the surface of the wall.
=Dwarf Polyanthas.=--These only need to have the old flower stems cut
out in March.
=Hybrid Perpetuals= and =Hybrid Teas=, dwarf and standard.--If pruned
for garden purposes or what I call enjoyment, not for exhibition, all
dead wood and weak or unripe shoots must be cut out to the base of the
plant. The centre of the plant must be kept clear by removing shoots
which cross each other. The strong ripe shoots from the base should be
cut back to about twelve inches, and the laterals on the old wood cut
back to about four to six eyes. This is merely a general guide to the
pruning of these two kinds of roses. But the rosarian, as I have said,
will have to study the peculiarities of each individual plant, and to
adapt these instructions to its needs, leaving more shoots on the
stronger roses, and keeping them longer than on the weak-growing
varieties.
=Teas= and =Noisettes=, both dwarf and standard, are pruned on exactly
the same lines as the _Hybrid Teas_ and _Hybrid Perpetuals_, but must be
pruned in April instead of March.
PROPAGATING ROSES.
The three chief methods of propagating roses are by--
1. Budding on the briar stock.
2. Cuttings.
3. Layering.
=Budding.=--This is the best-known method of propagating. And it is so
widely practised by amateurs and gardeners of all degree, that it is
better to get an object-lesson in the art than to depend on written
instructions. With a little practise any one with neat fingers can bud.
But great care must be taken in the operation, not to bruise the bark of
the bud or "shield" that is to be inserted in the stock.
The best stocks, whether for dwarfs or standards, are those of the wild
Dog Rose from woods and hedgerows. These should be taken up in October
and November, care being taken that each stock has fair roots, that the
roots are not torn or bruised, and that they are not dry and shrivelled
when planted. In fact, they ought to be treated with just the same care
we bestow on our new roses when we plant them out. The stocks may be at
once shortened, to about three feet for half-standards, and very strong
ones for specimen or weeping roses may be kept six and eight feet long.
But in shortening both, they must always be cut just above a bud. In the
following summer these stocks will have thrown out side-shoots; and it
is in these that the buds are to be inserted. We can tell when "the bark
will run," _i.e._ that it is ready for budding, by trying whether the
thorns break off clean when pushed by the thumb. If the thorn bends and
does not leave the bark, the wood is not ripe enough. If the thorn
sticks tight to the wood, and yet is brittle, the wood is too ripe.
Dwarf stocks are treated much in the same way, but must be planted
nearer the surface than standards; for when they are budded the earth
must be removed right down to the roots, in order to set the bud as low
as possible, as it is inserted in the stem itself, and not in the young
wood of the year.
We then choose the "scion"--a twig of the rose we wish to propagate
which has already flowered, with plump but not too large buds behind
each leaf stalk. Inserting the budding-knife about half an inch above
the lowest of these buds or "eyes," we slice down, making a little dip
inwards towards the wood as the knife passes the bud, to nearly an inch
below it, not cutting through the bark, but peeling it off the scion.
The thin slice of wood which adheres to the inside of the strip of bark
containing the bud, is now removed by inserting the knife between it and
the bark, and jerking it out sharply. Nothing should now be left in the
bark save the soft green substance of the "eye." But if this has been
dragged out with the wood, the bud is useless, and must be thrown away.
The shield of bark is then trimmed to a point below.
The stock is now made ready to receive the bud. At the point we have
chosen for inserting the bud--in standards let it be as close as
possible to the main stem--a perpendicular slit from half an inch to an
inch long is made with the budding-knife, care being taken only to cut
through the bark and not to wound the wood below. A short cross-cut is
made at the top of the slit. Then the bark is gently raised on each side
downwards from this cross-cut, with the flat handle of the knife.
Into this slit the bud is slipped by putting the pointed lower end into
the cross slit, and pushing it down as far as it will go. We then cut
off any bark at the top of the bud that overlaps the cross-cut, so that
the shield fits in perfectly, when the side flaps of bark are brought
gently over it.
With a bit of Raffia grass, well moistened in water, we now bind up the
bud; beginning from below with a double turn over one end of the Raffia,
and keeping it quite flat, exactly in the way we put on a surgical
bandage. When we come to the bud itself, the Raffia must be wound
tightly and as close to the eye as possible without actually touching
it. When the whole slit is completely and evenly covered, slip the end
of the Raffia through the last turn and pull it tight. The operation is
now complete.
CUTTINGS.
Roses on their own roots are grown from cuttings, and it is a system
which suits many varieties.
=How to make a cutting.=--Cuttings are taken from well-ripened twigs
which have already flowered, or from a lateral upon the main flowering
shoot, which has ceased growing without bearing a blossom. They should
be from two to six or seven inches in length, with three to nine buds
upon them. And judgment is needed regarding these buds in choosing the
twig, as we must take one on which they are neither immature nor too
fully developed. In the case of a cutting with ten leaves we cut off the
top a quarter of an inch above the fourth leaf, and the same distance
below the tenth. The four lower leaves are then cut off close to the bud
they cover, and the three upper ones are left on. When the cutting is
planted, two-thirds of it should be in the soil.
[Illustration: FIG. 3.--Rose cutting with a heel, 4 leaves cut, 2 leaves
left.]
Cuttings are taken in two ways.
1. With a heel; that is a small portion of the wood of the stem from
which the twig grows.
2. Without a heel; being cut through just below a bud.
[Illustration: FIG. 4.--Rose cutting without a heel, 4 leaves cut, 2
leaves left.]
=Cuttings under glass.=--Cuttings of the choice kinds of Teas, Hybrid
Teas, Hybrid Perpetuals, and Chinas are raised under glass, taken from
pot plants as soon as they have flowered in the spring. The cuttings are
put in pots filled with fibrous loam and silver sand, about six in a
five-inch pot. When ready to root at the end of two or three weeks, the
pots are placed in a frame on bottom heat to start growth. The same plan
is pursued in the autumn, with cuttings taken from plants grown out of
doors; but they do not strike as rapidly as those taken from pot plants
earlier.
=Cuttings in the open ground.=--This is an interesting and easy way of
getting a good stock of many kinds of hardy, strong-growing Perpetuals,
Sweet Briars, Ramblers, etc. And it may be successfully carried on from
early in August to the middle of October.
Cuttings are inserted three inches apart in rows, leaving some ten
inches between each row. They may be either set in a trench, or dibbled
into a specially prepared bed. I have tried both plans, and find the
following very successful. A bit of ground, partially but not too much
shaded, is forked up; a layer of good rotten manure laid on it; upon
this three inches of leaf mould; on this again three inches of sharp,
sandy road-scrapings--silver sand would be as good or better, but here
the gravel road-grit is handy. The bed is then stamped down as hard as
possible, until it forms a firm solid mass. The cuttings are then
inserted in rows--a hole of the right depth for each being made into the
compost with a smooth sharp-pointed stick the size of a lead pencil--a
long wooden penholder is a good dibble. Into this hole the cutting is
thrust till its base rests firmly on the bottom of the hole, and the
soil is pressed tight round the stem with the fingers. When all are in
place a thorough soaking of water is given them; and except for firming
them in when worms raise the soil about them, they must not be disturbed
until the top leaves begin to fall. We shall then see which are likely
to strike, and can pull out those whose wood has begun to shrivel, as
they are dead.
Many of these cuttings will show flower the next summer. And by
November--_i.e._ fifteen months after planting--they can be lifted and
planted out in their permanent quarters.
The other plan is to make a little trench eight inches or so deep in
good loamy soil, with a layer of silver sand at the bottom. The cuttings
are set against the sloped side of the trench, and it is then filled up
with soil and stamped in very firmly. I find this answers best for the
Penzance Sweet Briars; but personally I prefer the former plan for other
roses.
The cuttings must be well watered and carefully weeded from time to
time, and in the winter must be given slight protection by fronds of
bracken or boughs of evergreens laid lightly over them.
LAYERING.
This is chiefly resorted to when it is wished to increase the stock
rapidly of some very choice rose. It can be carried on in summer and
early autumn.
The directions given in Mr. Rivers' Rose Amateur's Guide of 1843 are so
admirable that I quote them _in extenso_.
"About the middle of July in most seasons the shoots will be found about
eighteen inches or two feet in length; from these, two-thirds of the
leaves should be cut off, close to the shoot, beginning at the base,
with a very sharp knife; the shoot must then be brought to the ground,
so as to be able to judge in what place the hole must be made to receive
it; it may be made large enough to hold a quarter of a peck of compost;
in heavy and retentive soils this should be rotten dung and pit sand in
equal quantities, well mixed; the shoot must then be 'tongued,' _i.e._
the knife introduced just below a bud and brought upwards, so as to cut
about half way through; this must be done at the side or back of the
shoot (not by any means at the front or in the bend), so that the tongue
does not close; to make this certain a small piece of glass or thin
earthenware may be introduced to keep it open. Much nicety is required
to have the tongue at the upper part of the shoot, so as not to be in
the part which forms the bow, as it is of consequence that it should be
within two inches of the surface, so as to feel the effects of
atmospheric heat; unless this is attended to the roots will not be
emitted quickly; the tongued part must be placed in the centre of the
compost, and a moderate-sized stone put on the surface of the ground to
keep the layer in its place. The first week in November the layers may
be taken from the parent plant, and either potted as required, or
planted out where they are to remain. Those shoots not long enough in
July and August may be layered in October, when the layers are taken
from the shoots, and, if any are forgotten, February and March will be
the most favourable month for the operation: as a general rule, July is
the proper season."
[Illustration: RUGOSA.
ROSA ALBA.]