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hard pruning, and starting babies

sunnysideuphill

13 years ago

Polareis (rugosa hybrid) and Mme Legras de st Germain (Alba) are both almost done flowering. (P will do two more flushes, easily, if left alone, but...)

Each of them is a lax mess, for different reasons. P suffered from torrential downpour last year, and has a very unattractive shape at the moment, naked middle w/pompon blossoming ends. Mme just got too big to be unsupported, and is so huge that getting support in there at this point will be nearly impossible.

So, after several weeks' delay due to daughter's wedding, bad weather, and a crazy work schedule, it looks like tomorrow is the Big Day w/the Pruners.

I went to the propagation forum and found good directions for taking cuttings, and each of these roses has plenty of material. I bought a sterile potting mix, and tonight I am going to wash a bunch of small pots in a weak chlorine bleach solution.

I am working until 4 tomorrow, which leaves many hours of daylight to get this done. I am psyched!

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Comments (9)

jerijen
13 years ago
FWIW:
Many people use a rooting hormone.
Many people swear instead by willow water.

Malcolm Manners reported on test results which showed that either was good -- but using BOTH greatly increased success.

Also, my DH swears by soaking cuttings for a little while in the willow water, and he likes to water cuttings in with NOG, a Kelp solution.

And if you are going to use a rooting hormone, I'd advise a liquid or a gel (such as Dip 'n Gro) rather than the powdered Root-Tone.

Again, FWIW . . .

Jeri
rjlinva
13 years ago
I don't want to sound discouraging...but, I have found Polareis difficult to root. I'm not sure why, either. I haven't tried but 3-4 times, but, I have very little success with THIS rose. I've not tried MLGSG yet. This is a rose that I would like to propagate as it was supremely beautiful for me this year.

Good luck.

Robert
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User
13 years ago
I have had some success going the hardwood cuttings route with rugosa types. As you are not in a southern heat hell, maybe try both - if you have no luck with semi-ripe cuttings now, try hardwoods in October/November. Also, I have used pots but find better results in an outdoor sheltered trench.
sunnysideuphill
Original Author
13 years ago
Jeri - Not sure where to find/how to make willow water, not having any willows that I recognize as such - do you think that a few baby aspirin crushed and dissolved would be a substitute? (I believe that I read somewhere that drinking willow bark tea was an old pain relief remedy, and the chemical was similar to aspirin...)
I do have the powdered rooting hormone, never knew there were other options. Since I don't have much of it left, I'll try another type, thanks for the suggestion.

Robert - when Mme was smaller, about ten years ago, I started several by bending the young canes over, making a little bowl of compost in the soil, pegging the cane into the bowl about 12" from the tip with an old wooden clothespin, covering that spot with mulch. At the end of the summer, two of three canes I'd pegged had rooted at the pegged spot, and my sister now has them.

Campanula - I have so much of that Polareis that I think I will start some soft, some hard. And the raised bed vegetable garden will provide a good laboratory for a sheltered trench approach this fall.
jerijen
13 years ago
I have heard of people using aspirin in that way. I would keep the solution weak, and I'd try to avoid the coated kind.

Jeri
lagomorphmom
13 years ago
Here's a nice page and it also has a recipe for using aspirin

Here is a link that might be useful: Salicylic acid
rjlinva
13 years ago
Thanks for the comments on hardwood rugosa cuttings and tip rooting MLGSG.. I will try both. Each of these roses is excellent for me.

Robert
fogrose
13 years ago
Thanks so much for the salicylic acid link, lagomorphmom!

That will come in handy when willow is not to be found.

Diane
lagomorphmom
13 years ago
You're welcome. I'm going to try it sometime, too.

Fyi, if you don't want to make 4gal you can use 'low dose' aspirin instead:

Regular strength aspirin = 325mg
Low dose = 81mg
Thus, 4 low dose = 1 regular

So, 3 Reg per 4 gal water = 12 low dose per 4 gal water
OR, 3 low dose per 1 gal water

(Phew! ;-)

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