Advice for my Crown Princess Margareta climber
Rick (zone 6b, MA)
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
I'm a relative novice to rose growing. Last year several folks in the "Name that Rose!" forum identified a rose given to me in June 2015 without a label as a David Austen Crown Princess Margareta, and I'm pretty sure she's a climber. She's had a rose sawfly problem which I will hopefully get under control this year.
But I haven't yet decided how to handle the fact that she may be a climber. Because of that and because I've had her for less than two years, I haven't pruned her much. The canes are going in every which direction and are of different lengths. In general I haven't come up with a game plan.
Right behind her is a brick wall. I'm a tenant and am not sure my landlord would be happy for me to drill anything into the brick to hold the canes.
Any thoughts on a good game plan to get her looking beautiful? And would you agree she's a climber? (I can't do anything about the yew planted so close to the rose.)
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Rick (zone 6b, MA)
7 years agolast modified: 7 years agoRelated Discussions
Crown Princess Margareta - Will it go on an Arbor?
Comments (12)And I look forward to seeing your new gardens! I agree...dead of winter was the time to leave - I could never do it in spring. I have to tell you........your photos were the ones that always stuck in my mind. A combination that I especially love and am going to try to recreate was one that had the beautiful spring pastels I love - pale yellow, mauve, apricot, pink and a coral that just set everything off - simply gorgeous! I just cant wit to get these roses Friday and get them in the ground - so glad I added CPM and its going on a double arched arbor with swing in my backyard and I will have a direct view from where we sit on the deck. It is so cold wet and dreary now.....seems like spring will never come, but a perfect time to plant roses!! Thanks so much for your comment! Judith...See MoreAck! Planted Crown Princess Margareta and Evelyn too close?
Comments (30)Hi Rabbit: I read in previous post that you are a writer, made $$$ on a novel, I would like to know what's the name of your novel so I can check out. I like to read in my zone 5a winter. I appreciate the kosher-chicken-mushroom recipe you gave to me here ... except my husband gives me dirty looks when I put salt, and my kid gives me dirty look when I put mushroom ... so I haven't made it. Per your question of banana peels buried under bush ... that's great too. I chop up banana peels NPK 0-3-42 with a scissor and soak in molasses & a bit of vinegar for my tap water at pH 8 to extract banana's soluble phosphorus. Per your question of when to stimulate blooms? Right after it's done flowering, then I give it nutrients for the next flush. Right after moving a rose, I also give it soluble-nutrients to encourage root-growth. Alameda (Judith) in Texas wrote on how she forced stingy Graham Thomas to bloom: "When I was at Chamblee's last September, I asked what in the world I could do to the thing to make it bloom. They suggested Carl Pool BR 61. I doused it with that.......lo and behold, a few fall blooms! I did it again in spring and the bush actually bloomed well! I also used the combination of Spray N Gro/Bill's Perfect Fertilizer on it. After the bloom cycle, I cut it back - when I pruned in spring, I didn't allow those long tendrils." Rabbit: Carl Pool BR 61 has NPK of 9-58-8, plus trace elements. The high phosphorus is from monopotassium phosphate, which I tested using 0-58-34 bought from Kelp4Less, tons of blooms on Sonia Rykiel and recently transplanted Golden Cel. A cheaper source at $6 is MiracleGro Soluble Bloom Booster, NPK 10-52-10, with all trace elements. I tested that on Stephen Big Purple bought as tiny band this April. The result? 3 buds 1st flush, 7 buds 2nd flush, pinch that off, a week later, more buds were formed. Those zillion-petals also demand calcium, best in soluble gypsum, plus extra potassium. Soluble gypsum I bought cheap from Kelp4Less ($8 for 5 lbs.), free shipping. Sulfate of Potash has lower salt index 43, but I prefer banana peels with zero salt. Plantation blackstrap molasses supplies 20% calcium, 17% potassium, 20% iron & other trace elements. In soluble-fertilizer experiments, the best root growth was achieved through high potassium and high calcium, plus decent phosphorus. Best root growth also means more flowering....See MoreCrown Princess Margareta in my Retirement Garden
Comments (47)For me, the key difference between Rebecca's experiences and mine with CPM are the words "snow cover". She had total snow cover and total winter survival, where I usually have no consistent snow cover and no cane survival (though it's root hardy for me). That's why my CPM never blooms. The temperatures below the snow never get below 32 degrees F so that's why the air temperature can be well below zero and the rose survives fine. We're too dry to get consistent snow cover in the winter so my CPM never has surviving cane. I agree that she's not a rose for a small space, though she grows well on a obelisk. If you get consistent snow cover and/or bring it inside for the winter with the obelisk you might get blooms. Sorry to hear about JD, Carol. My John Davis only hangs in by a toenail every winter in my zone 4 pocket but isn't quite dead after several years. I've never gotten him big enough to bloom though. Cynthia...See MoreHow would 2 Crown Princess Margareta's do climbing on a NJ arbor?
Comments (26)Your Desdemona was mislabelled?! What is she then?! Now I feel great I didn't go get your Margareta yesterday, even though it was very tempting :-) I don't think I saw Golden Celebration at Dearborn. They have the poet's wife, Graham Thomas, and a couple of TGs in the yellow hue. Baker nursery was closed for good (bad). In my failing attempt to find Jude the Obscure several weeks ago, I drove to the address listed for Corner Copia Farm Market , but ended up in a field. I then called and was told they weren't there for four years! I went to Williams Nursery in Westfield last Thursday, and found they only had three or four pots left. They also raised their price to $49. I was so disappointed that I didn't pay attention to the names. You may call them and ask. They do pick up their phone and check stock for you based on color. Good luck! PS. I am new to gardening too. but I think you should be able to plant one rose for now. I planted TG on one side of my trellis, with Eden on another. Now I wish I had put a clematis on the other side or even morning glory, as Clematis will grow faster so I don't have to wait several years for my trellis to be filled....See More
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