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Winter Rose Care & Pruning

Although major rose pruning is not done until late February into early March, there are a few things I do to get roses settled in for the winter. First, I wait until the first frost has occurred before I do anything. That happened on December 1 this year, a little later than normal. If you do any pruning prior to that, new growth will be encouraged, and it will just be nipped later. I will then do minimal pruning, about 1/3 of the plant or to about waist-high. It does not matter how you make the cuts. More precise pruning will be done in late winter. Giving roses a slight pruning at this time will decrease the damage from strong winter winds. Roses are not deeply rooted, and any long canes can spell trouble. Pick off any remaining leaves, if possible. I know that can be a big job if there are still many leaves left on the plant but you don't want leaves, especially diseased leaves, left to fall and harbor spores for next season. Clean the area around the base of the rose. Rake out ...
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October Flowers



With recent rains, the garden has exploded with growth. There is not an abundance of blooms though, just a scattering here and there.  Thursday the sun came out and it was a perfect day to be out in the garden. The grass strip was overgrown and desperately needed cutting. I did that and managed to fill the debris bin with pruning and clean-up. Notice the deepening shadows as the sun treks farther south. Our front garden faces north -


Here are some flowers from perennials that blooming this week -

Persicaria 'Blackfield'


Aster 'Purple Dome'


Alstroemeria 'Aurea'



Anenome 'Cinderella'


Fuchsia 'Voodoo'


Strawberry Tree (Arbutus 'Compacta')

Dahlias

Aruncus 'Horatio'

Geranium 'Azure Rush' - this is a new variety that is similar to 'Rozanne', the queen of hardy geraniums. It is supposed to be smaller in size. We shall see.

Persicaria 'Golden Arrow'

This post doesn't include annuals in pots and roses. I'll get to those in a future post.

Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
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Comments

  1. LoisOctober 14, 2023 at 10:29 PM

    Your garden is so gorgeous!!!!! Thanks for sharing the photos

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  2. Lee@A Guide to Northeastern GardeningOctober 15, 2023 at 10:37 AM

    Your fall garden is looking absolutely gorgeous! Thank you for sharing these beautiful views. It is starting to look very fall like here as well on the other side of the country in the northeast!

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  3. Hoover BooOctober 16, 2023 at 4:58 PM

    Your garden is very sophisticated with a lot of foliage textures and color, more than floral color alone. The shaggy blue conifer on the left, palmates on lower right, Rhododendron(?) oval/shiny mid right, and so on, then all the different colors of autumn. I think I go too overboard on flowers. Must start thinking about foliage plants though it is a trick to find shrubs that will stay small enough here--with our 12 month growing season, lots of plants grow far bigger than what the tag claims.

    Beautiful purple in that Aster, especially with the blue conifer above it.

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    Replies
    1. Phillip OliverOctober 16, 2023 at 10:23 PM

      Thanks Hoover Boo! I have to say that I'm reaching the point where I struggle to find good spots to place sun-loving flowers. Things are growing awfully fast and I think it will be a shade garden before long. Not sure how I will cope with that!

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  4. Phillip OliverOctober 16, 2023 at 10:24 PM

    Thanks Kris! Geranium 'Rozanne' is an incredible plant!

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