skip to main content

Dead-looking canes that are not dead, argh!!

11 years ago

I just had the most frustrating morning while pruning my Cornelia rose bush. I generally do not do hard pruning, but I do like to remove dead or diseased canes/branches. As I set out to do this on Cornelia, I found a lot of brown, dead branches. After cutting the cane, as I pulled it out of the bush, I find that new growth is coming from nodes that appear completely dead. This is the only rose I have that does this and I just don't understand it. Is it normal for certain roses to do this, or is it a health issue that the rose bush is dealing with? My Cornelia has always suffered from die-back and I have even considered replacing it with another Cornelia. This rose is about 10 years old, which I don't believe is old for an own-root OGR, but most of the canes are very grey and dead-looking, even though they are producing viable laterals.
Molly

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (11)

roseseek
11 years ago
It's completely natural for very old wood to appear dead to us. I was pruning with a friend Monday in her garden and we tackled her Roxburghii. She's grown it for decades and lamented it appeared dead, but among the gray, dried looking, dead appearing branches were many new buds beginning to swell and show color. It's often necessary to follow the "dead" cane to its extremes to make sure that woody, bark covered wood is actually dead or just doing what Nature has it programmed to do. We've all cut something which appeared dead...and wasn't, so welcome to the club! Kim
jacqueline9CA
11 years ago
Yes - I always follow the cane to the very end to see if it is sprouting growth anywhere - which can make you dizzy on a large rose! I did my Sombreuil the other day, and that was really the only way to tell if the 10-12 foot long canes were dead or not.

Jackie
Related Discussions
Dead Rasberry Canes as Bee Habitat
Q
Comments (9)
I have little bees who live in my rose canes :) The favorite bee rose I've found is bracteata. The bumblebees sleep on the stamens like pillows! Or they are drunk on the nectar, lol. That one gets out of hand in warm climates, though. The bees who tunnel into my canes aren't picky, so a smaller rose would do, too. Leaf-cutter bees take parts of the leaves of roses also. I have all sorts of bees. They love creeping charlie early on, and then nepeta and clover, ornamental sages, then they adore the anise hyssop when it blooms now through fall. Later, they love the sedums. They like a lot else, too, but those are always covered with them. I didn't realize there were so many kinds of bees until my gardens really got going :) My lawn is rampant with lovely clover, so I step on way too many all season, but I feel worse for them than the painful toes. eta: I forgot that they flock to the lamb's ears flowers if you let those grow. They are so crazy about them I didn't cut them down until they looked awful. They came back really fast, so no need to wait (unless the bees won't let you cut them!) This post was edited by meredith_e on Fri, Jul 11, 14 at 4:32
...See More
Dead canes on roses. Need help, please
Q
Comments (5)
Oh my not so there are regular posters on here from Australia, Greese, Italy and many overseas countries. Do you know how to add Australia after your name. Once that is done repost in the Antique Forum where there are more people who come from very hot climates. They are nice people and thou it may take until tomorrow for answers you will get some. Good luck with your roses.
...See More
Dead Canes on Roses
Q
Comments (4)
Well... I think some are just more robust than others and can take a beating and keep on ticking. A while ago I had two truckloads of river rock dumped on some roses. I mean BIG truck loads. And the rocks stayed there, braking all the canes off and blocking all the sun, for a few weeks. Once all the rocks were placed where they needed to go, I figured the roses would most likely be toast. Not so! I cut them back to the ground (basically just cleaned up the awful breaks the rocks made) and they were back with gorgeous new growth within weeks. I have the wonderful CA climate on my side though, even with the drought, it doesn't freeze. So that helps! The question is... why did the canes on your rose die?
...See More
1st DeadHead of the Season - Do I Prune the Crossing Canes
Q
Comments (8)
Thanks. BS was and was not on my radar (new here) . A few roses did lose quite bit of it's leaves as the season progressed last year, right before Sept/Fall time. I have not decided whether I'm going to be spraying or not. I try not to ....survival of the fittest, eh. Since you mentioned it, I guess it t would be worthwhile to spend some time pulling/ID the crossing stems and thinning it out. I would say we're talking maybe 3 sets of crossing canes. I -noticed- how dense it was and saying it needs more air... HA HA. You guys should have seen me last year. I like buying plants physically in person. I get to cherry pick the lot....ya know. With mail order roses, there was a few, I was not crazed how the budded stems were and in what direction they were in. There was more than a few where I actually had put down stakes and had twine pulling/redirecting the budded stems.
...See More
jardineratx
Original Author
11 years ago
Fortunately, Cornelia is not very thorny, but I still have many battle scars from my pruning project. My Zephrine D. rose is prone to cane die-back, but it only occurs at the tips of the canes and I never find buds breaking beyond the browning tip. With Cornelia, the new buds form along what appears to be totally dead branches. I just need to be more vigiliant before I make the cut and not have to deal with the "OMG, what have I done" moments.
Molly
mad_gallica (z5 Eastern NY)
11 years ago
I tend to leave the roses whose normal look is dead until last. That gives them a bit more time to leaf out and look not dead.
jerijen
11 years ago
All good advice.

I also often bend twigs. If they're dead, they SNAP. If they're alive, they bend.

I find that many of the Teas and Chinas do this. It's one of the things I warn folks about, when we do OGR pruning demos.

Jeri
mendocino_rose
11 years ago
A lot of my roses are elderly and I run into things like this all the time. I find it frustrating and confusing. I'd like to say I'm so experienced and wise but I'm not.
seil zone 6b MI
11 years ago
Oh dear, so sorry, but I've been there and done that a time or two myself. Reine des Violettes gets me every year! And I know it so I try to be really extra careful and start at the tips and work down...and it still gets me, lol! All I can say is don't worry, it will grow and bloom anyway.
jardineratx
Original Author
11 years ago
Oh, Seil, that is so funny when you say "I know it, so I try be be really extra careful". That's exactly what kept happening today. It was like Lucy pulling the football from under Charlie Brown....it got me every time, and each time I thought I would not be fooled, I would find another living cane on the ground and the guilty pruners in my hand. Now that I hear responses from others, I have gone from frustration to mild amusement.
Molly
User
11 years ago
As I always say (and have said more times than I can count), "More light and air for the remaining canes!"
~Debbie
cemeteryrose
11 years ago
Lightly scratch the cane with your fingernail or pruners and see if there is green under the bark. Easier than tracing the cane to the end and you don't have to do much damage. Even so, I too end up cutting off viable canes every year when I prune. It happens!
Anita
jerijen
11 years ago
That's a good tip, Anita!

Jeri

Related Stories

DECORATING GUIDES 12 Deadly Decorating Sins

Are your room designs suffering from a few old habits? It may be time to change your ways

DECORATING GUIDES Things Are Looking Up for Artistic Floors

Why should walls get all the glory? Pleasing rug patterns and dramatic inlay details make for eye-catching statements underfoot

PAINTING 10 Rules for Your Next Painting Project

By Jaana Bithell

Take your next painting journey from ‘argh!’ to ‘ta-da!’ with these designer tricks

REMODELING GUIDES 10 Signs You’re in the Middle of a Renovation

A renovation project allows you to choose every last detail for your home, but decision making can quickly go from ‘Ooooh’ to ‘Argh!’

BATHROOM DESIGN The Family Home: 8 Easy Tips for an Organized Bathroom

By Danyelle Mathews

If your bathroom has that hit-by-a-hurricane look that tends to come with kids, sort things out with these tried and true ideas

MOST POPULAR From the Pros: How to Paint Kitchen Cabinets

By Vanessa Brunner

Want a major new look for your kitchen or bathroom cabinets on a DIY budget? Don't pick up a paintbrush until you read this

COLOR 11 Reasons to Paint Your Ceiling Black

Mask flaws, trick the eye, create drama ... a black ceiling solves a host of design dilemmas while looking smashing

HOLIDAYS Budget Decorator: Easy Holiday Decorations

By Laura Gaskill

Get a festive look for a fraction of the usual cost with basic items from the craft store and your own supply

STORAGE 5 Tips for Lightening Your Closet’s Load

By Jennifer Phelps: Organize. Design. Reinvent!

Create more space for clothes that make you look and feel good by learning to let go

STORAGE Tap Into Stud Space for More Wall Storage

It’s recess time. Look to hidden wall space to build a nook that’s both practical and appealing to the eye

Sponsored

Shylee Grossman Interiors

Industry Leading Interior Designers & Decorators in Franklin County

More Discussions

My Visit to the Huntington Library and Gardens

14

Do noisettes wander at will?

6

Does fish emulsion deepen bloom colour?

19

Out of curiosity, how many/who is left?

12

Bet you've never seen . . .

3