Open Pruning

Day 61

The Daily DuBrule

I have been moving around my yard working on all my roses. The goal is to open prune them, removing growth that is heading inside the plant and pruning to an outside facing bud. Since new rose shoots head in the direction of the bud you prune to, it makes sense to prune to outside facing buds. Why? Because you want the plant to be very open in the middle, increasing air circulation and decreasing the frequency of fungus. This morning I noticed that I planted crocuses in the heart of my 'Chuckles' rose. These help to show what open pruning is all about!

 Last week I worked on my 'Moje Hammarberg' rose. This is a little harder to see in the picture but look close and you will see what I am talking about. You can see through the plant. After making many major cuts in the center, I then top the plant, removing about 1/3 of the growth.

I do this pruning twice a year. Now, as the new growth is emerging, and again in July. Once the pruning is done, I add three or four shovels full of compost and Pro Gro organic fertilizer to jump start the roses. They LOVE organic compost and fertilizer!

Finally, you just might enjoy a couple of pretty closeups of the flowers in bloom in my yard. The purple crocuses, of course, that have stolen the show in my courtyard this week as the 'Arnold's Promise' witch hazel has finally dropped all its flower petals like yellow shredded snowflakes. And, one of the best harbingers of spring, Azalea mucronulatum. So much is blooming so quickly this week, I can barely keep up!