Detailed Explanation of Softwood Cutting and Planting Techniques for Climbing Roses

  Climbing roses, also known as climbing vines or rambling roses, prefer a warm, sheltered environment with good air circulation. They grow well when planted in fertile, loose, well-drained soil. Because they have abundant, brightly colored flowers, numerous blooms, and a long flowering period, they have high ornamental value and can be used as greening material for trellises and balconies, playing a unique role in garden landscaping and environmental beautification. So today, the editor will talk about softwood cutting techniques for climbing roses.

  1 Bed preparation and sand covering

  Choose a flat plot of land and make a raised bed 0.1 m high, 1.2-1.5 m wide, and 10-20 cm long. The path width is 40 cm. Loosen the bed surface soil to a depth of 10 cm and rake it level. Then spread fine river sand over the bed to a thickness of 10 cm, and pat the edges of the bed firmly all around. Twenty-four hours before cutting, sterilize the soil with 0.5% potassium permanganate to prevent the cuttings from being infected by pathogens.

  2 Cutting cuttings and preparing stem sections

  In late June, on cloudy and rainy days or in the early morning or evening, select semi-lignified shoots after flowering from vigorously growing young trees or perennial trees (requiring a thickness of 0.35-0.5 cm). Each cutting should retain 2-3 plump buds, with the upper cut 1-1.5 cm above the upper bud, and the lower cut located below a leaf or axillary bud, which helps rooting. At the same time, retain the upper 2 compound leaves, with each compound leaf keeping 2-3 leaflets, and the leaf axils should have obvious axillary buds.

  3 Cutting treatment and insertion

  The cut stem sections should be immediately soaked in clean water to prevent the leaves from wilting. After all cuttings are trimmed, tie them into bundles of 50 or 100, then quickly dip them in 800-1000 mg/L naphthalene acetic acid, immersing the base 3 cm of the cuttings in the solution for 10 minutes. When inserting, use a plant spacing of 5-6 cm and a row spacing of 8-10 cm, inserting 160-250 cuttings, with the insertion depth equal to half the length of the cutting. Insert them evenly and neatly so that the leaves of the cuttings do not overlap. After insertion, press the soil firmly by hand and water thoroughly. Open-field cutting begins in mid-to-late June and continues until early September.

  4 Net covering

  After cutting, water thoroughly. On both sides of the seedbed, insert bamboo strips every 1 m to form arches, with an arch height of 0.5 cm, and lay a double-layer shade net with 20-30% light transmittance over them, pressing the two sides and ends firmly with bricks.

  5 Water spraying and net removal

  After covering with the net, on sunny days from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., spray water once every 1-2 hours. In high-temperature weather, appropriately increase the number of sprays at noon, and on cloudy days reduce the number of sprays. Each spray should be just enough for all leaves to receive water. When the base of the cuttings grows roots 5-8 cm long in 4-6 days, the shade net can be removed in the evening or on cloudy and rainy days. After that, spray thoroughly once every 5 days. By September-October, as long as the bed substrate is not too dry, there is no need to spray water.

  6 Seedling stage management

  6.1 Topdressing

  About 60 days after cutting, evenly broadcast diammonium phosphate or compound fertilizer once over the seedbed, at 18-20 kg per mu. After fertilizing, spray water promptly. Of course, foliar fertilizer can also be sprayed: 80 mg/L urea + 120 mg/L monopotassium phosphate.

  6.2 Pest and disease control

  5-7 days after cutting, after stopping watering at night, spray 500 times carbendazim once for disinfection, then spray once every 7 days for 3 consecutive sprays.

  6.3 Overwintering protection

  Climbing roses have a certain cold resistance and can tolerate a minimum temperature of minus 15 degrees. In cold winter areas, they are prone to freeze damage and shoot dieback. Therefore, before the soil freezes, water the bed surface thoroughly once, press the shoots flat on the ground surface in the same direction, and cover them with 5-10 cm of sandy soil, then cover the sandy soil with straw curtains. After March-April of the following year, remove the cold protection materials promptly.

Cutting and Propagation Techniques for Climbing Roses

Climbing roses are climbing shrubs in the genus Rosa, subfamily Rosoideae, and the plants are relatively tall. Each year they send up thick new shoots from the base, and thicker lateral branches grow from the tips of two-year-old climbing branches.

Climbing roses are mainly propagated by cuttings, but superior varieties are difficult to root from cuttings, so grafting is more often used in production. In the Nanjing area, Rosa multiflora var. cathayensis is often used as rootstock. Thornless roses have well-developed root systems, and grafting onto thornless roses as rootstock is best; branch, bud, and root grafting are all possible. Branch grafting is mostly done in late November by digging up the rootstock and grafting indoors (planted in a seedbed in moist sand, no watering needed within 10 days, and survival in 20 days), or by field grafting in early spring. Bud grafting can be done in all four seasons, commonly using the large open-door form.

1. Cutting method for climbing roses:Softwood cuttings are taken in late spring or early autumn. Survival is easier if a misting system is used, and it can be done in all four seasons, but rooting is easiest when the soil temperature is 20.5°C, the air temperature is 10°C, and the relative humidity is 70%-80%.

2. Grafting method for climbing roses:The rootstock is mostly wild rose seedlings. January-February is the suitable grafting period, and the main grafting methods are bud grafting and branch grafting.

3. Tissue culture of climbing roses:Mostly select the 3rd-7th nodes of semi-lignified branches just after flowering, remove the leaves on the branches, disinfect them, and cut them into single-bud stem segments for culture.

For transplanting and field planting of climbing roses, bare-root seedlings are suitable for planting in late autumn or early spring. Potted seedlings removed from pots can be planted during the growing season, but planting in the rainy season is best. Field planting should choose a sunny, ventilated, well-drained site. After digging the hole, apply heavy base fertilizer; after planting, water thoroughly. Thereafter, water when the soil is dry. Avoid water accumulation in the rainy season and pay attention to timely drainage. In hot summer droughts, water in the evening.

During the new shoot growth period, frequently apply a dilute liquid fertilizer of 1:1:2 (or 3) nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium compound fertilizer, and avoid concentrated fertilizer. You can also use 0.1%-0.3% urea and monopotassium phosphate with trace elements for foliar spraying in the morning and evening. Among them, varieties that bloom multiple times should, after flowering, promptly cut the flowering branches back to 3-5 buds to encourage new shoots to continue blooming.

After old branches have bloomed for several years, the "remove old and keep new" pruning method should be used for renewal. For climbing varieties such as "Climbing Crimson Glory," pruning should be light, cutting each branch back to 10-12 buds. If too few buds are retained, the new shoots will inevitably grow too vigorously and affect flowering.

In spring and autumn, aphids often harm young shoots and leaves. During the growing season, leafcutter bees bite the leaves into round holes. Pesticides such as dimethoate can be sprayed for control. From June to August, the leaves are prone to black spot disease, which is most severe during high-temperature and rainy periods in July-August and can easily cause defoliation. This disease should be prevented mainly, and in warm spring, spray 1:1:200 Bordeaux mixture or 200 times copper soap solution once a week for 3 consecutive weeks for prevention.

When the disease occurs, spray 800-1000 times thiophanate-methyl or 400 times tecloftalam once a week; collect and burn diseased leaves. In the rainy season, powdery mildew is likely to occur and cause defoliation. Before budding, spray 3-5 degrees Baumé lime sulfur mixture. When the disease occurs, spray 800-1000 times 50% zineb or an equal-amount Bordeaux mixture once a week for 3 consecutive sprays.

Climbing roses have abundant flowers and bright colors, blooming all over the plant with numerous flower heads, making them very spectacular. In gardens, they are often attached to various well-ventilated trellises and corridors, forming landscapes such as flower balls, flower columns, flower walls, flower seas, arch shapes, and corridor shapes.

Gardening DIY: Training Climbing Roses