A Detailed Guide to Pruning Branches and Leaves and Propagating Roses by Cuttings
If you want the shape of a rose to become more defined, you need to constantly exert a certain influence on the plant during its growth, controlling the direction of its development through artificial or external factors. Pruning is a very effective way to do this. However, not everyone is an expert in flower management, so pruning techniques also need to be learned and mastered.
How to prune the branches and leaves of roses
1. Prepare tools
Make sure you have a good set of pruning tools: scissors for trimming thin twigs, and pruning shears for cutting thick branches. Make sure your tools are sharp enough to ensure smooth, clean cuts.
2. Pruning method
Disinfection: before pruning, wipe the scissors with alcohol, and rinse them again after each cut. This can avoid cross-infection between diseased branches. Prune at a 45-degree angle so that the sap in the branch flows downward, which can also effectively prevent infection by pathogens. Never point the cut surface toward the center of the plant. Choosing a pruning position above a bud eye to cut the branch allows the plant's energy to be transported to the bud eye, promoting branch growth. After pruning, apply a layer of white glue or plant ash to the cut for disinfection, which can effectively avoid disturbance from pests and diseases.
Clean up dead branches: for dry branches that have already died, they cannot grow new branches, so prune them in time, which can also save nutrients. Prune thin, weak, or crossing branches and leaves. Thin and weak branches, and branches growing crosswise toward the center of the bush, should all be pruned cleanly from the base. These branches and leaves affect air circulation and the health of the bush. To achieve the ideal shape for the rose bush, prune the remaining branches. Cut 0.6 cm outside an outward-facing bud eye so that the branch will grow outward.
How to propagate roses by cuttings
1. Soil for rose cuttings
For rooting rose cuttings, it is best to choose a new shallow clay pot with a 20 cm diameter, because it has good air permeability and makes rooting easy. Or, to keep it even simpler, you can choose a transparent plastic box, and pot them up after the cuttings succeed. For the soil, a culture soil mixed from 20% humus garden soil, 40% horse manure crumbs, and 40% river sand can be used as the substrate.
2. Time for rose cuttings
Spring (May) and autumn (October) are best, when the temperature is between 20-25°C, which is most suitable for cuttings.
3. Preparation before taking rose cuttings
Before inserting the cuttings, use a spray bottle the day before to spray the culture soil in the pot damp, but do not spray too much; by the next day it will be just slightly moist, which is most suitable for cuttings.
The insertion depth is 3-4 cm. When inserting, first use chopsticks to poke a hole in the soil, then insert the cutting, press the soil firmly with your hands so that the pot soil fully contacts the cutting, and then water thoroughly once.
4. Rose cutting method
When taking cuttings, choose the current year's semi-lignified, healthy, robust branch tips as cuttings, and use very sharp scissors;
Cut 6-10 cm with nodes, and the cut should be smooth and neat. Remove the lower leaves, leaving only 3-4 small leaves at the top. Buy 1 ampoule of vitamin B12 injection, open it, dip the cutting in the liquid once, take it out and let it dry for a while, then it can be inserted.
5. Care after rose cuttings
After inserting, it is best to cover the flower pot with a plastic bag, tie the bag opening with a string, open it again when watering is needed, and tie it again after watering thoroughly.
Pots with cuttings should be placed where there is no direct sunlight. The pot soil of the cuttings should be sprayed with water every day for 10 days. Except on rainy days, spray once on cloudy days, and twice when the climate is dry, but the amount of water sprayed each day should not be too much. After 10 days, still frequently pay attention to keeping the soil moist. Within 4-5 weeks, shade is needed, and only after budding can they gradually receive some sunlight. Generally, it takes about 2 months to root. After that, only normal care is needed.
Basis for watering roses
When watering roses, if the surface soil in the pot looks whitish or has a feeling of cracks, it means the pot soil is dry and it is time to water; if the surface soil feels moist, it means the pot soil is still very wet and should not be watered, as watering can easily cause root rot and death.
This makes it easy to judge the timing of watering, and after watering it is not easy to cause root rot. This watering method is relatively practical and not likely to cause the problem of root rot from watering. And after maintaining it for a period of time, you can summarize the watering cycle according to your own situation, and find the watering method that suits you.
Can roses be grown hydroponically?
Roses can be grown hydroponically, but not for long-term hydroponics. You can try hydroponic rooting, and when the roots grow to about 3 cm, switch to soil culture. Of course, in the early stage when the rose has not bloomed, you can grow it hydroponically to enjoy the leaves; the tender green leaves are quite beautiful too. Afterward, it must be switched to soil culture, because the lack of nutrients in water makes it very difficult to support rose blooming.
Pruning roses is a process that goes on year after year. Once you have mastered this technique, you may take a big step forward in shaping your flowers. There are also many propagation methods for roses, and cutting propagation is the method with a relatively high survival rate among all propagation methods and relatively faster growth.