Pruning Rose Bushes
Updated : July 23, 2019
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[…] as you can. After snipping off the rose, I will cut down to right above the next branch-break. (watch the video here) If you cut too far above the branch -break, the tip will get brown and die; an invitation for […]
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[…] made you a nice video on how to trim rose bushes! Click here! […]
What about Knock Out roses that never go dormant? I have one that has a very woody base and is scraggly but am not sure when to cut it. I blooms pretty much all the time but the blooms are small and sparse.
Thanks,
Mylinda white
Roses have 3 leaf branches and 5 leaf branches. Was told it makes a big difference in how long it will take to produce flower depending on which leaf stem you cut ???
Gary,
I really don’t know but I’m inclined to believe that it really doesn’t matter. Do some both ways and see what happens.
Thanks for the info on roses. I love them but have always been intimidated by them. I’ve always heard “Roses need lots of care.” Time for me to get some.
Oh, by the way. No, you don’t look like Willy Nelson. You look better than him.
Thanks Mike, it’s really help….!
Well yes Mike, I couldn’t help thinking how much you looked like Willie Nelson. Only the guitar is missing. By the way though, I heard something about donkeypox going around so I hope you and the donkeys are vaccinated.
We are George. I don’t know how to run a guitar, no sense hanging one around my neck. But Willie? Willie can play the guitar to the point that he wore a hole in his.
Mike, thank you so much for your site! I got your newsletter years ago and lost track of you for a while. I was so happy to find your site. I have one rose bush that had a load of snow from the roof fall on it last year. Many branches were broken and now run parallel to the ground and are sickly. One branch in the middle shot up and is over 2 feet tall with limbs branching off only around the top of the bush and a ton of flowers in that area (kind of looks like it is trying to be a tree). The entire plant developed black spots, which I assume is related to fungus entering the damaged areas. I applied a fungicide and cut off the majority of the leaves with spots, but I am thinking a more severe pruning may be required. I would like to save the bush, but I am wondering if I prune it back to bare stalks if it is likely to survive. And, I am wondering when to prune it. I am in Michigan, but the dumb bush is still putting out new roses despite freezing temps overnight. I would appreciate any advice you can give me. Thank you for all you do to help clueless gardeners (like me)!
Jenn,
I for sure would prune this bush pretty hard once it goes dormant, probably in two weeks. Cut it hard and it should respond nicely in the spring.
Mike, I used the Bayer Rose Care product with the fertilizer OVER the top of a lot of miniature rose bushes that I bought from N’oreast Roses when they sold out, and the fertilizer burned and killed a lot of the plants. I learned to put it around the bases of the rose bushes. But I do love the Bayer products for everything.
Systemic pesticide is absorbed by the plant making it toxic to insects INCLUDING POLLINATORS bees, butterflies, possibly birds and frogs that ingest those infected insects. Very bad abuse of power as human beings in my opinion. What to spray on plants to get rid of aphids? Water! Hard mist will knock them off and they are too slow and don’t live long enough to return. Insecticidal soap for other infestations and baking soda for fungus. I wonder if the current rose virus that is killing them everywhere will be found to have anything to do with their “immune system” being weakened by toxic pesticides.
Hi Mike, Thank you for your extremely helpful videos and newsletter. I have a question about trimming old Rose bushes. I bought a house that has an old and very neglected Rose bush. It’s about 6.5 ft tall and very scraggly. How far back can I prune the stems? They look like old wood now so I’m afraid to prune it back unless the stems are green and don’t look like brown wood. Please advise me. Thank you.
Jennifer,
You first have to ask yourself; “How much do I like the plant as it is currently?” If you don’t like it much then prune away. Chances are it will respond nicely. If you green wood on top of brown wood, that brown wood is alive and well.
Good beautiful morning, Mike!
I have been using the Bayer for roses, and my roses are doing well . . even with all the rain we’ve had here in NE Ohio. About how often should I be using the Bayer, please?
I have 2 questions but their not pertaining to roses’ Could you please yell me how and when to prune lilac bushes ? Also do you know what causes tomato plants to turn brown at the bottom when they have been planted for a couple months ?I really don’t understand the tomatoes turning brown leaf like that because they were so pretty and big..
Thank You
Darlene,
The best time to prune Lilacs is right after they bloom. Tomatoes? I would say too much moisture, not enough air flow that low down in the plant.
Brown on the bottom of tomatoes is blossom end rot… one of the solutions…calcium
Tomatoes tirning briwn at the bottom is called blossom end rot. Too much or not correctly watering the plants.
Tomatoes are susceptable to Verticillum wilt, a soil carried disease that will bother potatoes and peppers too. The only way I know to combat it is to plant in a different area next year.
Am I supposed to seal the ends of the branches when I prune my roses? I have had problems in the past with Borer Flies if I don’t seal the cut ends with nail polish. The Flies burrow down into the rose stem and lay an egg, which turns into a larvae that eats away at my rose bush. Is this right or not?
Diane,
These days experts no longer recommend the sealing of wounds on any plants after pruning.
Maybe cut them on an angle so water drips off instead of standing on a flat cut?? Just an idea…
Hi Mike! 🙂
Last year, we bought 2 Butterfly bushes, planted them, then pruned them back in the fall. Come spring, they were as dead as a door-nail! We’ve since moved and we bought just 1 bush. It’s still in the original pot for now, ONLY because I’m disabled and trying to get my husband to help me transplant it into a big plastic tub. If he won’t help me that way, I need his help in getting the potting soil down to the ground so “I” can do it.
My question is this….can you do the same with the butterfly bushes as you do the roses? I don’t want to kill it and I do want it to last more than just the summer.
Thank you,
Sharon
Sharon,
Butterfly bush do best if planted in the ground before winter. Some times they over winter well, other times not. But in a pot they are likely to not do well at all.
My experience also. I lost almost all of my potted Butterfly bushes that were potted one exceptionaly cold winter.
I have several b’fly bushses and one year all the books said to cut them back in the fall to about 4′ or shorter, Well I did and it nearly killed them. I had to nurse them back to life literally . I live in Northern Alabama and since then, I only dead head & cut out any dead limbs and they have been fine ever since.
Gigi,
Cutting a butterfly bush back to 48″ in the late fall most certainly shouldn’t harm them. I suspect something else went wrong.
I was taught to always allow the rose bush to grow several rose hips at the end of the blooming season as it is a signal to the plant to slow the production of flowers.
Everytime my wife prunes her roses, I grab the cutting to start new ones.. Often a cutting will take root , produce new leaves and flourish,,, Only to die a week or two later.. Just wilts and dies.. What am i doing wrong??
Sam
Sam,
You don’t say how you are doing them. No fertilizer for sure on new cuttings and see this article; https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/2015/01/easy-summertime-plant-propagation-techniques-can-home/
Thanks Mike! I just moved to a new house with roses that have been neglected for years. my husband wants them gone because they are so overgrown, but now I know exactly how to tame the bushes and satisfy my husband.
Love the videos!
Love the newletter! Keep it up.
Any chance of getting transcripts for your video posts? We are in the country, so it’s hard to watch the videos. We used to get the info in the newsletters years ago, but now we click through and can’t even see the info. It’s like Christmas morning without the presents. Thanks!
Hi Mike: Over the years I have enjoyed and tried many of your videos. With success! I am now wondering when is the best time to transplant thimble berries, and raspberries? Thanks for all your help over the years.
Susan,
When they are dormant. Transplanting season starts around Thanksgiving and ends in mid to late March in most climates.
When you use BAYER pesticide you are endangering our bee population. Not only the bees, last year I didn’t see one Monarch butterfly. Also I use rose flowers to make tea and for an edible decoration on my salad etc. also the rosehips would contain this pesticide. I don’t want this in my meals…
Thank you Mary, I’m sure birds, frogs and preditory insects don’t want tainted bugs as meals either!
Mike, I have grown a lot of roses and always trimmed just above the second 5-leaf stem. Is it my imagination or does that really help?
Gary,
I think a lot of people are taught that way and it’s certain an effective way to prune them. Is where you cut them all that critical? I don’t think so.
Mike, I enjoy receiving your newsletters, but, I think I rec’d this one about pruning roses later than everyone else, rec’d 9/18, and everyone else’s post’s are from around July. Nevertheless, I have a question about Knockout roses since I have over 85 beauties in my landscape, and that is just around the house and one center bed in our circular drive (I also have 17 other perennial flower beds). Did I mention I like flowers? I digress. Back to the roses, My roses usually bloom from
End of March into Nov., we live on Va.’s Eastern Shore, and I have always been a very cautious pruner, so I have these really big rose bushes. The site is spectacular as you drive in the glen to our house, but, I have a feeling they should be pruned better, I never cut off the spent flowers, they just keep on blooming. What are your suggestions. Keep up your good work!!!!!
Shirley,
With almost anything that blooms it’s always a good idea to cut off spent flowers. Once the flower is spent the plant starts putting energy into seed production which really serves no good purpose to you as a gardener. When you remove the spent blooms you should cut back to at least five leaf buds below the bloom. This in effect prunes the bush and causes more later branches which makes for fuller plant. Your place sounds beautiful!
Mike, Thanks ever so much for such a speedy reply and for the compliment.
Yes, I enjoy my garden and do get a lot of compliments on it. And, thank
you for clearing up my misconception about snipping the spent blooms on
my Knock-outs. I was really given some bad information previously, but,
alas, now with all these bushes, I think I will be spending quite a bit of time
outdoors trimming, lol!!!!
Again, thanks for the great advice. Keep up your great articles.
BUT, Knockouts are not supposed to be deadheaded! Isn’t that what they advertise and why we all ran out to get them? I planted at least a dozen. It drives me crazy looking at the dead blooms, not to mention the way they get all out of shape when they send out new growth. I prune to tidy them up, but gave up the deadheading because it is way too much. I prune them down to 2-3 ft. in the fall and they come back and bloom profusely every spring.
of course you can deadhead them. When my husband was sick we spent a lot of time at a big hospital that had extensive KO plantings. I saw them pruning them with a saw blade attached to a weed eater. It kept the hedges uniform and lovely.
Do you prune while they still have blooms? My KOs in South Georgia are never without at least some blooms but the bush needs cutting desperately. It is tall and stringy.
Thanks,
Mylinda White
Mylinda,
If a plant, any plant, needs pruning it’s best to prune it when it needs it. Waiting never seems to end well. You certainly are not going to harm the plant.
Thank you, Mike, for another wonderful presentation. My neighbors and I have been discussing rose pruning lately and I’m glad to know what I told them I thought was right has been confirmed by you– that the dead flowers have got to be cut off and that you cut above the leaf stems. But I did NOT know that you can cut them so low over winter. I’m going to do that to mine this year and see if they don’t look way less straggly next year. Thanks!
you didnt say anything about putting some banana peels around the roses. They really are good for them.
My grandmother put coffee grounds around them, I remember her roses were beautiful. I think it provides nutrients and repels insects – organic is the way to go.
Greetings- thank you so much for the rose demo- I love roses but I never seem to have the exact niche in pruning. Now as I see your demo I trusting a more enjoyable outcome.(the person whom does alot of my maintenance has been doing what you show not to-pruning leaving too much bush to develop by not pruning lower on that stem)Donna lee
Mike, this is info I have been looking for. I have two rose bushes that are very gangly. How far back can I cut them back so they grow better next year? They display beautiful blossoms, but other than that they look awful.
Kriss G.
Kriss, we cut our roses bushes back really hard, back to about 12″. Then during the blooming season remove the spent flowers along with at least some stem and four sets of leaves so they don’t get overgrown during the growing season.
Mike you sent me a video on starting rose cuttings putting hormone on their tips and wrapping them up in newspaper! Could you send that back to me for I have misplaced it!
Mike or Jerry can you send me the vidio on how to root rose cuttings. please and thanks. susan
Jerry Sams I found this on the site, if you stillneed this.
https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/2012/02/how-to-grow-roses-from-cuttings/#
love this site thanks mike!!
Thank you! That was very helpful! Seeing you do a sample is exactly what I needed.
Thank you so much for the tips now i know why my roses die.
Help!!! I have been nursing a fig bush in a container in my home for two years, and I feel its time now to plant..how do I know where to plant, north south etc and do I need a second one for it to grow and produce..thanks
Mike, does the Bayer systemic product you use on the roses kill bees when they try to get the pollen? I’m concerned about this since there’s already a real problem with losing honeybees in the US.
Susan, I don’t honestly know the answer to that, and not that it should matter, but recent info coming out is that the bee colony decline has reversed itself, so that’s a good thing.
Bayer uses Imidiolclorid. known to kill bees. PLEASE do not use or promote Bayer rose 3 in 1! Better to use organic fertilizer for roses (Espoma, Dr. Earth) and use liquid Copper fungicide to guard against things like blackspot. Please consider the bees and beneficial insects when using pesticides as they do not discriminate!
Dee,
You are right, in my nursery I rarely, if ever use an insecticide unless a state inspection mandates that I treat a particular plant and that rarely happens.
Thank you Dee, it is very important that people learn to not use these toxic chemicals! My grandmother put coffee grounds around her roses and they looked beautiful.
What perennial plants are good for an area bordering a lake. I would like some trees or large bushes to provide some privacy as the lake is a good size.
Golden Curls willow would be beautiful around a large lake and you can propagate them just by sticking a small branch in the mud.
Hi Mike, I ordered your propogation book and love it!!! I have a question about prunning my roses. I live in Michigan and purchased 6 “knock out” bushes this spring. Can I still prune them in late December?? And how much should I take off??? Thanks for all your great tips. Oh yeah, I propogated some forsyithia last week. I will let you know how they grow. Have a Happy Holiday!!!
I look forward to more propogation this spring, since my hysband says, that I could open a arboretum
I want to thank you Mike for the video on pruning & trimming the roses. It was very helpful thanks again. Angie
i like your flowers
Excellent video, Mike! I have approx. 50 Roses and they are flower producing machines. This Spring, we went on a trip and when we returned, there were no flowers, at all. It was the first thing I notice as I drove up the driveway. I went to inspect and found these little black Grasshoppers all over my Rose bushes. The little monsters had consumed all of my flowers. As soon as a new bud would open, they went to work on it. Do you know what these could have been? They were black, with some yellow on them and they can eat some flowers. I called my pest control service and they came out and sprayed all the bushes. Now, I see one, every now and then, in my yard and they are huge, compared to the size they were when they had their picnic on my Roses. Once the insects were gone, the Roses had flowers all over them. Now, however, it has been extremely dry and hot. They have dropped most of their flowers, despite being watered. I am going out, today and purchasing the Bayer product, you recommended on the video. Thanks for the tips and please, keep them coming. Do you know fruit trees, like citrus trees?
There are ways to control pests without using horrible systemic pesticides, those chemicals are killing off bees and butterflies and really cannot be good for anyone. My grandmother put coffee grounds around the base of rose plants even after toxic pesticides were made available to the public, and her roses always looked beautiful.
Hi Mike
Just want to thank you for your amazing site
Thank you Mr. MIke.. this was a great video clip.. i have been collecting rose plants and this video definitely helps me take care of my rose plants:-)
Thanks, Mike, for your very informative gardening tips.
thank you for a grait job on thease Rose,s
YES IT MATTERS WHEN TO PRUNE ROSES. I ALWAYS PRUNE MY ROSES THE MIDDLE OF APRIL BY THEN YOU WILL KNOW HOW FAR DOWN THE CANES TO CUT AND ALSO WHICH CANES CAN BE COMPLETLY REMOVED.. ALWAYS BACK TO A OUTWARD FACING BUD OTHERWISE YOUR ROSE WILL LOOK TERRIBLE….
I just got your video about pruning roses. I am in northern Virginia. Is it too late to prune my roses now or should I wait until Feb or March? I have a beautiful rose that used to produce alot and now not so much. I think it needs a good pruning.
Sandra, I really don’t think it matters. I do it first chance you get, because if you wait you might not get around to it. If you prune it now, then you won’t have to touch it until it starts blooming.
Thanks for the tip mike.–Great video also.
Mike!
Just viewed your video on pruning roses!!! Thanks so much! My husband and I have moved to his Grandparents farm and I spent the summer working on reviving all kinds of perennials I have bootloads of what we call Finnish Roses. , beautiful white ones!!! So now I know what to do. Can I get away with pruning in the spring??? Thanks Gail M.
Gail, if they need pruning I’d do it early in the spring and they should do fine. Then remove the spent blooms like I show in the video.
Mike when you cut back those rose’s dont throw them away, try taking off the two bottom leaves and dip it in water then in root tone or any hormone rooting powder and stick it in a pot of good soil and then water them in , soon they will root and you will have another . plant
i did that with 4 tomato plants in the spring and i got 14 tomato plants.
my husband gave me some long stem roses and i cut the bloom off and rooted the steem and had llong steem roses all year try it you will be surprised …… even if you dont get 100% of them to take they are freebies 🙂
Mike. I kept trying and could never get the pruning rose bushes to come up, read most of the 106 coments, but no video or anything else.
bob
Bob, I just tried the video and it worked great for me. How fast is your internet connection? That’s all that I can think of.
I have had 3 beautiful rose bushes for about 10 years. This last year they flowered like a wild rose instead. Do you know what could have happened to my roses?
Mike,
Just re-reviewed your rose pruning video because my husband’s friend gave my beautiful roses a chop down for the fall. He did clean away a lot of dead wood. He says that I should give them a shot of fertilizer now (fall), before freezing weather (I live in Chicago), cover them with leaves and a protecting bucket (I have styrofoam rose covers). What do you say about a fall shot of fertilizer?
Deanna
Deanna, I don’t like fertilizing anything late in the year. It can produce late growth that won’t have a chance to harden off. I’d fertilize in the spring with rose food, the spray with Bayer 3 and 1 several times throughout the growing season next year.
I have 3 large red buds that are about 5 years old that have thousands of pods with seeds wtill on the tree. I think they are ready to come off.
How do I remove the seed from the pod, what do I do with the seed then, and how do I plant?
What size potting container should I use?
What type of soil should I plant them in?
How deep do I plant them?
How much water, drainage is needed?
Can I start in my basement with grow lite or is it better to plant outside and have sunlite?
I leave in northwest Alabama.
Thanks
aj
AJ, on this page, http://www.freeplants.com/growing-japanese-red-maples.htm, there’s a link to instructions for growing Japanese Maples from seed. Treat the Redbuds the exact same way, but open the pods and remove the seeds before you put them in the fridge.
Mike we appear to be losing a japanese maple about 31/2 ft tall expected to range to
about 12 ft–no leaves left but branches are alive and has been fed 3 times a month
beyond the dripline—help!!!
Mike, question. My wife has a beautiful rose arrangement and each stem has started sprouts. I have never seen this before. How can I transplant them and keep them from dying?
I love your news letters, I was raised on a farm many years ago. If you can give me some advise as what to do with these cuttings I would appreciate it.
RV Brogan
Burning bushes are their most beautiful, red in the fall, so I like to wait til the leaves fall or until the earliest spring to prune them.
Hey Mike do therse instructions also apply to climbing roses? I Have a Cecil Brunner Rose that I bought from a women who sells victorian and old style roses. My husband is afraid it’s going to take over the end of the house!
Rebecca, I’m sure it would work, just do it when the rose is dormant. Plants are resilient, but dormant pruning is best.
HI MIKE, I’ve been reading your newsletters for some time now and they are great! You are the man. I do have a question but not about roses. I live in NY and of course our cold season is approaching. I started 4 Japanese Lace Leaf maples this spring and they are approximately 9 inches tall (still babies). Where should I leave them comes the frost time of year. Should I take them indoors? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. BTW, Congratulations on the wedding.
barbara
Barbara, they need to go dormant so indoors is not the place for them. Leave them outside in a protected area and just take a plastic tote from Walmart, paint it white ( do not use clear!) and place it over top of them and weight it down. Make sure they are on the ground, or even planted then covered. Put a weather proof mouse bait under the tote so the mice don’t eat your plants.
Great vid, Mike — very clear, very informative. I’m going to go out now and prune them based on what you demonstrated. Thanks also for recommending a particular rose food — Bayer sounds great, since it’s a 3-in-one.
Willie Nelson…hmmm, as John Wayne would say — “Not hardly!” More like a Willie on steroids! You and I would put Willie to shame!
Please do not use systemic pesticides it kills bees, butterfliles and possibly even birds who ingest the bugs.
Hi Mike love your videos and so do my kids you look like their grandfather; my 11 year old son thinks he might want to do landscape design someday; he used your technique for digging up stumps and it is hard work but we always have fun. Thanks for sharing!
Mike or any one else),
Are there any special settings that I need on my computer to view your videos? My computer is constantly (after every 4th or 5th word) re buffering.
Mike, should rose bushes and small shrubs be covered in Minnesota winters?
Thank you, Mike.
I always wanted to plant roses but afraid about pruning them and keeping them alive.
Now I will get my roses and start to enjoy the plant.
Thanks so much, Mike, for your videos and instructions….you are giving novices like me a chance to be successful! My roses were looking like someone said “leafless twigs” …tall and gangly and unsightly(roses were pretty though) and I was too scared to do much of anything for it might be the wrong thing…Really appreciate all the extra hints from others also. Keep up the good free help, Mike…one day when I’m able I want to buy your book for I love ‘growing’ and want very much to do it right!
Hi Mike, love the look! I grow knockout roses and per the planting instructions (description) it says that they are SELF-CLEANING which means when they are done blooming the blossom and some of the stem dries up and falls off. It does save time as there is no deadheading needed but you still need to prune them, when it’s time, like all other roses. I also prune twice a year and have lovely blooms in the Fall. Love your real touch on gardening!
Thank you Mike. Your videos really make things easy for a visual learner. I will use thies tip on our roses and my mon inlaws.
Would you in the future do one on liliac pruning and care. I have a two liliac trees that are a 3rd gen. I’m taking care of them for my mom inlaw. One was hit with weed killer. I cut all of the dead branches off and feed it once a week with Miracle grow. I’m hoping to make it healhty again and to also root a branch and contuine the liliac at our house. My father inlaw orginally keeped the liliac going by rooting the plant before he would moved anywhere right up till his passing.
I don’t know much about liliacs and if you have any videos or plan on making one I would really love the help.
thanks Linda
Oh Mike! You are cute as a bug!!!!
I used a home receipe by the “famous” guy (?) and it seems to have killed some branches on my Rugosa Rose bush. The many, many thorns on the stems even yellowed as did the entire branch with healthy leaves that also yellowed. The receipe had some strong soap, ceyenne pepper in it. I was spraying the japanese beetles that were eating it up. This is what happened later. Did that receipe do it?? I had no trouble with this bush for 3 yrs. until I did that.
Thanks for your wonderful videos.
Pat
Hi Mike, I am seeing many ants around my rose plant, tried to check the under leaves found no insects but see some small black in the soil. Can you suggest me some organic way to get rid of ants. Thanks.
Mike, I understand your point about not worrying about where to cut. But, the bud eye that will produce the new branch only comes out at the junction of the of the 5 leaves and the stem. Of course you are right about not leaving the cut too long from the 5 leaves for dieback reasons. If anybody sees little circular cuts out of the leaves, don’t panic. That is from a leafcutter bee and it does not hut the plant.
Hi Mike, I received knock out roses for the first time this year. Some people tell me you don’t have to deadhead knock out roses for some reason. Is this true? Thanks in advance!
Deborah, that is not true that I am aware of. A knockout rose is just a rose and deadheading helps anything that flowers.
Hello Mike,
Always enjoy your videos and learn too.
I like your bandana which makes you look younger.
And Thanks for sharing to people around the world,
Thanks Mike, I just started with some minature roses this year. I found your demo to be so helpful. I did not know that i could prune them like big roses. Thanks and keep up the good work.
Dear Mike.
May I ask what is neem oil?
Neem oil is an organic insecticide that is derived from the tropical Neem tree. Here’s an article from Mike’s website
that explains all about Neem oil: http://freeplants.com/neem-oil.htm
Kathy Anderson
Mike’s Assistant
Hello Mike,
I want to thank you for the informative information about pruning rose bushes. I have several knockout Roses that are very beautiful in my landscape. I have friends and neighbors that will comment on how they look and how bright the color is displayed. Keep up the good work you’re doing a great job, and i will continue to use your video’s now, and in the future.
JUst started reading your newsletter and thought I’d send you a tip. I had trouble with deers eating my hostas, daylilies, garden and lots of other stuff.I whip 3 eggs very good and mix with 1 quart of milk. I put this in a spray bottle and go around my plants. It takes about 3 or 4 sprits for large hostas and 1 for small ones. I have lots of hostas and daylilies. One quart does them all. No more deer problems! I hope this helps you and your readers.
Gloria, thanks for the great tip! Maybe I’ll do a video so your tip really gets shared. Thanks again.
Thanks for the recipe!
Great video. I have always been afraid to cut that low on roses. My rose bushes don’t exactly look like bushes they look more like leafless twigs. Good tips. Nice attire.
You may look more like Willie some day. You need to get older, skinnier, shriveled, a bandana, – Naaaaaah – that will not happen – Like you just as you are. Keep on gardening.
Donald, thanks I appreciate that.
thanks from Spain. It could have been shorter, but you’re nice to watch in that Willie Nelson outfit… Next time you sing it…
I used to cut 2 leaves down from the flower, but now I know I can cut further down, and keep the shape of the bush.
Thanks again, and keep it up!
Hi,
Just want to mention that I have not had good luck with rose cones. WI winters and my windy location have caused me to lose 5 out of 7 rose bushes for the past three years up until last year when I did something different. I put a lot of mulch and tented them (for wind) with landscape material and only lost one bush, I use Neem oil to spray for bugs and fungus as that is natural and doesn’t hurt the good bugs along with some rose food. Side note, I had a lawn company and found out too late that the chemicals were killing the good bugs and keeping the birds away. This caused a huge problem with sod web worms eating a great deal of my lawn. Now I am taking care of my own lawn and using a more natural approach. The birds are back and eating the bugs for me.
For the lady that had the little green worms on her petunias……I had little green worms on my hibiscus plants last year and, when I searched the internet for “green worms/hibiscus”, I learned that I was NOT alone and that they are the larval stage of the Caddis Fly. I didn’t do anything to get rid of them last year and the leaves were all lacy and the blooms were minimal and small. This year I kept an eye out for them and, when the hibiscus were about 3′ tall I found the little green worms once again. I followed the recipe from the site….1 Tbsp. of Dawn (no other kind) dishwashing detergent mixed with 1 gallon of water and then applied to all leaf surfaces..top and bottom…with a spray bottle weekly until they all disappear. I happened to have a spray bottle on hand but they are available at the Dollar Store in the hair care section. I was fortunate enough to have to spray them just once and the problem is gone. Probably because I caught them early. Last year there would be several on the undersides of the leaves. They tend to blend right in with the ‘veins’ so they are hard to spot. Good luck!
Mike,
I have a problem with Colorado potato beetles eating my flowers after they have decimated my garden. I have tried numerous sprays and concotions with little or no result. Can you help?
I will be trying your recommendation for treating roses. I planted my wife a nice rose garden a year ago and this year I was unable to keep up with the black spot. It was as if the black spot was somehow tollerant to my spray. Will this Bayer treatment work for black mildew spots on grapes?
Thanks in advance for your help.
Mike, Bt san diego is what you want to look for to kill those potato beetles and save your crop. Here’s an article from Mike’s http://freeplants.com/ website that explains the different strains of Bt and what pests each strain will kill: http://freeplants.com/bt-organic-insecticide.htm
You might try Neem oil for the black spot on your grapes.
Good luck with your taters!
Kathy Anderson
Mike’s Assistant
Thanks Mike, I’m happy to be able to watch your videos!
Hi Mike
I like your tips on what to do with plants. It helps me out alot, I am a amiture at this and alot of times just common sense is not enough.again thanks
Mike,
Should n’t the cut be made at a five leaf point and not at three leaf points? read that would give you a sturdier bud stalk.
Ron, this is where I’m at a disadvantage. I read very little about gardening. But you have to be careful. There are those who write professionally about gardening and then there are people like me who have been doing it their entire adult life, day in and day out. We have the scars to prove it. The so called “pros” get so caught up in non essential details that they turn a 10 second task into a 30 minute project. I know my stuff works because I practice it daily and my stuff always looks great.
Thanks for the rose pruning video Mike. You are spot on. However, I’ve stopped using the Beyer systemic products because I’ve read the products are a suspect causing honey bee colony collapse. I’m sorry that I can’t cite the research but maybe you could research it and report back to your followers. It makes sense to me that if a plant kills anything that eats it, it would also harm a pollinating bee by making the pollen toxic to the colony. Thanks for your consideration.
Great video Mike! I watched all of the clips that you’ve made, and yep, I like your new outfit and love the bandana!
Thank you so much for posting all the short videos for great tips! I collect all your emails and really appreciate your real life gardening tips! Looking forward to the next one 🙂
Mike, thanks for the excellent video. Is there any difference in the way the pruner is held when you dead head the rose bush? I was told to make sure the angle of the cut is away from the interior of the bush, so the new shoot comes in pointing toward the exterior of the bush. By the way, you kinda look like Willie Nelson but your better looking and probably more convivial. Thanks
Thanks for the rose pruning tips. They are going to be very helpful as all of your tips are.
I did appreciate what you shared ====HOWEVER, I get tired, VERY TIRED of hearing the
same info AGAIN. YOU need to be concise, not never ending. The rose pruning was 5 min
11 sec. — pruning info started at 2 min 46 sec.
Even a book doesn’t draaaaaaaaaaag it out that loooooooong.
Yup! Willie you are!!
Thanks for all the tips. Now I will know what to do.
thanks,just what i needed
Cannot receive videos on the computer I have – is your video in written form also?
Karen,
No, the video is not availble in written form, but at http://www.freeplants.com/frame%20set.htm we have a ton of stuff that is available.
NO you do not look like willie nelson. Noboby is that ugly.
Thanks Charolotte, I was afraid people might mix us up!
I appreciate all your videos and tips. Keep up the good work.
Maybe you can help me? I have had a little green worm attack my petunias (which were beautiful and full of bloom) and devastate them!! Makes me want to cry. They were in various locations: window boxes and hanging baskets. Seems almost like something airborne attacked them.
I have seen a white spiney thing almost like the dandelion things you blow off the mature bloom in the air and on my plants. Is that some kind of thing that clings to the plant and turns into a worm? I know it sounds preposterous but I’m exploring every avenue.
Thanks in advance for your advice.
Jenny
Jenny, I don’t know that I can be of any help. I’ve not had that problem with petunias. Look around online and see if you can find the Ortho Problem Solver. Great resource for plant pest problems.
Would love to see you do a bit on climbing roses or do they not require pruning? I think the rugosa roses are best for rose hips and are virtually carefree except they can get enormous if you don’t prune. The bandana is a great invention for the heat…keeps the salty sweat out of your eyes!
Esther, same thing, just remove the spent flowers in order to keep the blooms coming.
The resemblance to Willie is uncanny! Can we, in the future, expect to see your videos
coming out of Nashville?
Thank you for sharing your knowledge and expertise.
Lynda, Probably Austin or Lukenbach.
I’ve been enjoying your great tips, but have a question, I prune in the fall, and then cover my rose with a syorform cone. Some say to cover with dirt, which is best.
Colleen,
Probably the cone. It’s white, reflects the heat so the plant stays dormant and the soil could rot the stems.
reading up on your tips, have really helped me out, in having a really nice, balance in my gardens. Being disabled now, from a accident, causing Tramatic Brain injury, which means I have short term memory, it helps even more, because I can watch them over and over. So again I thank you!
Gloria, you’re welcome. I glad that I can be of help.
Thanks for the clarity and tips for caring for roses. Really enjoyed.
Thanks Mike!
I have a miniature rose that was beautiful, but hasn’t been doing very well, so this was very helpful!
Thanks for the info. First thing this morning, I’m helping all of my roses bushes and trees.
Buy the way, I think you looked very sexy on the video.
Thank you very much for all your help.
mbd
Well . . . that seems like a stretch, but I’ll accept it. Thank you!
Willie (LOL), I like your outfit-looks comfortable. Do I need to cut the spent flowers on my Knock Out roses? Love your website-keep up the good work.
Carolyn, it’s helps to remove spent blooms on anything unless you want the plant to produce seeds or fruit.
Sorry, Mike…roses are best pruned in the spring not the fall…
Lyn, here’s the problem with. Many people don’t get around to spring pruning, then they miss that window of opportunity. I’ve done mine at both times of the year with good results.
in my northern climate (Canada), we prune in the spring, when the forsythia is in bloom; fall pruning promotes new growth which can be damaged by frosts and freeze ups
Lots of info in a short amount of time. Certainly will try all your methods and the Bayer product also. Thankyou for sharing your expertise.
@Michelle – i have never heard that about roses. Clematis yes, but not roses… you would also prune rambling roses or climbers a little different. thanks Mike for such a clear demo!!
BUT, do you SOUND like WILLY???\
I hope you are still doing this when we get back on our feet, so I can buy your information and knowledge. Right now I cannot, but thanks for all of the free advice. You’re great, and generous. colleen
Colleen, not a chance, no musical ability at all. You’re welcome, I hope to see you in our family soon.
Mike,
Thanks for the great rose video!!!! It really is a help to me – and, I’m sure, lots of others.
Shucks! You put Willie Nelson to shame!!!!!! He should be so lucky as to look as good as you! The bandana is really a cool look!!!! Love it! (And thanks again for the great video.)
Thanks Jan, for me the bandana is more about functionality to keep the sweat out of my eyes. I don’t do much for the sake of style. After we shot the video I had to break out my Jed Clampet hat to keep the sun off my head. It was hot last Saturday.
Hi Mike, Very good, I always was unsure about fall pruning, Thanks for clearing that up. At school they always said to trim back to a node with a five pointed leaf, but, your method seems fool-proof. I’ll be implementing it tomorrow as my Morden series rose bushes are in need of a mid-summer hair cut. What about Rugosas’, my F.J. Grootendorst has slowed down recently. There’s no hips so should I try going back as far as you did and then give it some 18-24-16 ? Also, is it too late to apply that systemic ? Will that work on Rugosas’ too ? Please keep up the good work, Thank You for all of your efforts !
Bruce, the systemic works pretty quickly being liquid, I’ll spray my roses again here soon. Just be careful with the 18-24-16 because it’s probably a quick release fertilizer and too much nitrogen is never a good thing.
hiya mike,
love the new look,
i have a tip to share, I have a yard full of beautiful roses,
and I keep them in great shape by feeding them Worm Tea.
it is natural, and I don’t have to spend money on Bayer product.
I also use my roses for tea and bath/cosmetic use, so I do not use chemicals.
A Elder,who grew roses once told me to put my Bananna peels on the ground
under my roses as they like them.
what do you think about that?
Sidlana, I think anything organic is a great way to improve any soil.
Thanks Mike for the great information. Last year I “dead headed” a climbing rose and it came back very strong with a second set of flowers for the year. That was a nice surprise.
I started using this product, this year, and glad that you recommend it too.
Your timing for this, was just right for me.
Thanks so much!!
I really enjoy all your help. I must give this video to my husband he just don’t like to cut the Rose bushes too short. This will help him.
Thanks for all your Hard Work and also your son.
Thanks Mike for the pruning tips. I have had more problems than usual with bugs eating the leaves on my roses. I got some of the Bayer to use on them but I have all those holy leaves that I have attempted to remove but it didn’t leave much bulk on my bush but it is producing more leaves and the bugs aren’t devouring them now. There are still some of the damaged leaves on the bushes that I am having trouble getting to. Will that harm or interfere with the health of my roses? All of your tips are soooo helpful! I had even forgotten what poison ivy looks like. Thank you!!
Great video. That was something I had no idea about but have wanted to learn. Thanks! ..and I like the bandana look
Thanks for the product recommendation! Now I know what to buy, which I will do this weekend in order to start getting my roses in good shape. Great demonstration! Very helpful.
Better than Willie……..
Thanks a bunch for the short videos. I love them!
Any suggestions for knock out roses? We just moved to SC and had never heard of this kind.
Inge, Knockout roses are really just a brand name. Treat them like any other rose.
Mike, I really enjoy your knowledge…thanks so much for putting the effort into this. You are teaching me a lot!
Good video, Mike. Are climbing roses pruned any differently? Thanks!
I think you are making Wille sick ha!!ha!!
Very informative and right to the point. Thanks now i feel confident when i go out trim my roses
Thanks Mike – great tips.
Is this true for all roses? I read some will only produce on last years growth. Is this true? Thanks for the great short vidoes!
There are many plants that only produce flowers/fruit on last years growth (also called year-old wood) but roses are NOT one of them.
lol, yup, could be Willie.
Mike, I jumped the gun and thought I was no longer signed up for your newsletter. Turns out I was and am now getting two. Would you delete one of them please? Thanks in advance.
Cindy, if you click on the “unsubsribe” link at the bottom of your newsletter, the page will show you both of your subscriptions and you can unsubscribe
one of them from there.
Thanks,
Kathy Anderson
Mike’s Assistant
Just a thought that rose hips are very healthy and good for making a yummy, cold fighting tea. So if that is what you are after maybe you would not cut off the spent flowers.
Of course there is I”m sure an organic method if you were planning to use the hips and not the spray that he recomends.
Try rugosa roses for hips….no spraying needed
I think you look real pretty in your new outfit. 😉
Thanks, Mike for the tips. I will be trimming my roses this morning. I have also used Epison salts in water as a rose bush treatment. This has given me some success. Have you heard this?
Becky F
Please be BEE friendly, and NOT use the Bayer insecticide products. The new Bayer products are making a big impact in adding to the decline of Honey Bees. Using products that kill Bees, is the same as throwing the Baby out with the bath-water.
What would you recommend?