We had a dry, warm and very windy day today. When I got home from work tonight I took a broom handle and lifted and shook the canes gently. It did help some, especially on the Champlain roses. The Morden Belle not as much. The MB canes are long and naturally arch downward. So that is not much help when trying to lift them. But the good news is the MB bushes are already throwing long new canes skyward which will help to fill in the "empty in the middle" look. So....not all is lost. Also lots of buds on the MB low canes and they are turning upward toward the sun. No time to deadhead tonight, but that is the plan for the weekend. Also lots of petals fell off when I shook the canes with the broom, so I think that helped too. I think you can see the new canes here and maybe some of the buds turning upward on the low canes. What this bush seems to do is throw long canes that then arch, then on the somewhat lateral/arched canes other shoots are again produced growing upward. Almost like pegging without having to peg the canes.

Some small clematis go into shock when first planted and do this, but the roots are fine. Cut it completely back to ground level and don't worry, it will come back much nicer next year ! Suzy

A few months ago, while pruning my trees, I removed the leaves from a few short branches and stuck them in a pot of soil. I promptly ignored them. Low and behold, they have rooted and now sport a set of leaves (don't get me started with all of the pampering I did with my winter cuttings and my With these being so young and tender, should I bring them inside for the winter -or- go ahead and let them go dormant and move them to the garage? From Lou's prior comment, he doesn't let them go dormant ... what is the pro/con for this? Both cuttings, as you can see, are tip growth and very green (have not hardened at all.) The left branch is from a Sultane the right is an Alma. One other thing ... at some point I will need to separate these into their own pots ... when should I do this? -Steve

My advice is for you to follow the directions given by Cecily, Jacqueline, and Seil. The bush is in a weakened state, no further cutting at this time please, even the blackened stem. You can remove it later after the bush recovers. Begin a regular spray program for the control of black spot now, and continue all growing season long. Spray all the leafless stems, even the black one ASAP. The bush should start fo leaf out very soon. Continue spraying every 10 days to 2 weeks there after, if using the Bayer fungicide. The Bayer fungicide works extremely well for me. I highly recommend it. I have not found the organic controls that I have tried effective, but I have not tried them all. Time your spraying carefully. Foliage can be damaged easily if spray is misapplied. Then the good you are doing is cancelled out. Never spray a thirsty bush, in the heat of the day, or when the temp. is 80 degrees F., or higher at spraying time or rises above 80 for a period of one hour after spraying. If you spray when the temp. is 78, and it gets up to 85 in just a half hour's time, that's no good. Spraying in the early morning or during dusk is always best. I could not grow roses to any degree of success in my garden where the black spot pressure is intense and relentless from spring to fall, without a regular spray program.