Plant breeders have given us roses that grow well under difficult conditions and bloom almost continuously from early summer to frost. Proper plant nutrition is easy and simple to provide with the use complete plant food that supplies all the vital elements needed from the soil. Insect and disease problems can be prevented easily with regular use of insecticide-fungicide that controls most chewing insects, sucking insects, and fungus diseases. With these aids, you can grow roses successfully.
GOOD STOCK: Buy good plants, preferably No. 1, two years old, field grown and budded plants. Plants that are not pruned should have 3 or more heavy 18-inch canes. Pruned plants should have canes with a diameter of at least 1/4 inch at the top. Plants potted in tar paper pots are preferred by many gardeners since they can be transplanted most any time of the year.
PLANTING: Select a sunny, well-drained location. Trim off all broken and bruised roots, cut top growth back to 6 to 8 inches. Dig planting holes at least 6 inches deeper than needed for the plant roots. Make holes large enough to accommodate roots without crowding or bending. Place a handful of small rocks or pebbles in the bottom of holes to facilitate drainage. Mix 1 tablespoonful of fertilizer with the soil placed over the drainage material. Cover this mixture with plain soil, bringing the level to desired planting depth. Make a mound in the center to receive plant. Set plant roots over this mound, spread roots, and fill in with soil. Firm the soil tightly 2 or 3 times while filling the hole.
FEEDING: Hybrid Tea, Polyantha, Floribunda Types: The first feeding should come in early spring as soon as leaf buds begin to swell. Clear away mulch and work plant food into soil around the plant. Use 1 rounded tablespoonful of fertilizer per plant (or 1 pound per 25 square feet of bed area). Second feeding should be made at the same rate and immediately following the first heavy bloom. Third feeding, also at same rate, should be made in late summer ... northern areas not later than August 15. In soutern areas, where blooming extends into October and November, a fourth feeding should be made about the first of October. Many growers follow a regular monthly feeding program during the growing season with good results. Tea Roses: Use one half of the above amounts, applying in a similar manner and at the same times.Hybrid Perpetual, Climbing, Shrub Roses: Feed 1 rounded tablespoonful of fertilizer to each square foot of space around the bush in early spring. Feed again when blooms start to appear. In both cases work the fertilizer lightly into the soil to within 4 inches of the plant.
SUMMER CARE: The cultural practices differ but little in various sections of the country, with exception of timing of operations that depend upon climate. Artificial watering may be necessary if summer rainfall is insufficient. If soil is well drained, there is not much danger of overwatering. When watering, soak the soil to a depth of 6 to 8 inches ... do not merely sprinkle. CULTIVATION is necessary to eliminate weeds and keep soil loose. Deep cultivation in midsummer is harmful when the roots are close to the surface. MULCHING during the summer will eliminate weeds, necessity of cultivation, and reduce moisture evaporation. Mulches should be applied 2 or 3 weeks before roses come into bloom.
DISEASES AND PESTS: Black-spot, mildew, and blight together with insects, such as aphids, thrips, and red spider, are some of the more troublesome rose disease and insect problems. Control is easy and prevention is practical with the regular use of chemicals, that controls most fungus diseases and chewing and sucking insects. Regular dusting every week or 10 days will make the disease-insect problem easy to handle.
PRUNING: Bush type roses should be pruned in the early spring when the leaf buds begin to swell, but before growth starts. Follow these basic principles:
Remove all wood killed or injured during the winter, cutting back to solid tissue.
Remove all weak, twiggy growth.
Shape plants by cutting strong canes back to -a uniform height, removing as little healthy wood as possible. Remove very old canes by cutting off at the ground level.
Cut ordinary hybrid varieties back to about 18 to 24 inches. Ramblers should be pruned after blooming by removing old unwanted canes at the base.
WINTER PROTECTION: It's not extreme cold that kills roses but rather the frequent alternate freezing and thawing that heaves the plant, thus breaking the roots. The winter sun and dry winds take moisture away from the canes and make winter injury more of a problem. Winter mulching with straw, peat moss, or other material is advisable in all but the extreme southern sections of the United States. This mulch regulates the soil temperature and tempers the effects of freezing and thawing. Pull soil up around each plant to a height of about 6 inches after the first frost, then after the ground is frozen r mulch.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Planting A Tree
Choosing a Tree
The first step in tree selection is to determine the type of tree appropriate for your property and your needs. Climate and soil play big roles. A date palm might have a tough time surviving a Minneapolis winter, for example. And a water-hungry willow would starve in the desert sands. Make sure that the tree species you are considering can flourish in your local climate and soil conditions (designated hardiness zone). And don’t forget some of these other important factors:
Matching tree to site is a key part of the tree selection process. What is the size of the site on which your new tree or trees will be situated? How big will that spindly three-foot sapling be in 30 or 40 years? Is an oak or a willow, either very large when fully grown, the best tree for a small front lawn in a city? On a large suburban lot, on the other hand, will a single small tree or bush be lost in a vast expanse of lawn?
A crucial factor to consider is proximity to buildings, sidewalks, driveways, streets, utility lines, overhead and buried, and septic systems. Trees spread out both above and below ground and branch overhang and root growth can cause considerable damage and incur considerable expense if a tree is poorly situated. Consider the planting location with respect to foundation, concrete and asphalt structures, and drainage structures.
Trees can play an important role in climate control. Deciduous trees planted on the south, west and east perimeters of a lot will provide shade during the summer while allowing scarce sunlight through in the winter when leaves have fallen. Evergreens, on the other hand, planted on the north and west sides of a property, can reduce winter heating costs by serving as windbreaks. Drainage is yet another issue to consider. Young trees do best when planted in good-quality, well-drained loamy soil. Heavy clays in poorly-drained sites present particular problems as many species of trees including white firs, yellowwoods, beeches, red oaks and yews will not tolerate ‘wet feet.’ In all cases, stagnant water pooling around roots can lead to ‘root rot’ caused by lack of available oxygen.
You can do a general test for soil drainage by digging a hole in the planting area and filling it with water. If the water hasn’t drained away in a couple of hours, drainage may be an issue. In areas where drainage is a particular problem, planting in raised beds of 12 to 18 inches of well-drained quality topsoil may be a solution.
Soil quality in new subdivisions often presents tree-planting problems. Construction materials, in addition to creating unsightly and difficult-to-work rubble, can alter the soils fertility by raising or lowering pH. Chemical and petroleum spills, which often occur during building construction, pose additional concerns. In cases where soil contamination is severe, the only solution may be to scrape away the contaminated soil and replace it with good quality topsoil at a depth associated with your planting objectives.
Personal taste is another key consideration. Think of how different kinds of new trees can enhance the attractiveness of your property. Make a list of the kinds of trees you admire and think about how they would look. Consider how your selection will fill in to the planting area over time. Make a few sketches or, if you don’t trust your own artistic talent, consult available landscape design software, or a landscape designer.
Next: Types of Trees »
The first step in tree selection is to determine the type of tree appropriate for your property and your needs. Climate and soil play big roles. A date palm might have a tough time surviving a Minneapolis winter, for example. And a water-hungry willow would starve in the desert sands. Make sure that the tree species you are considering can flourish in your local climate and soil conditions (designated hardiness zone). And don’t forget some of these other important factors:
Matching tree to site is a key part of the tree selection process. What is the size of the site on which your new tree or trees will be situated? How big will that spindly three-foot sapling be in 30 or 40 years? Is an oak or a willow, either very large when fully grown, the best tree for a small front lawn in a city? On a large suburban lot, on the other hand, will a single small tree or bush be lost in a vast expanse of lawn?
A crucial factor to consider is proximity to buildings, sidewalks, driveways, streets, utility lines, overhead and buried, and septic systems. Trees spread out both above and below ground and branch overhang and root growth can cause considerable damage and incur considerable expense if a tree is poorly situated. Consider the planting location with respect to foundation, concrete and asphalt structures, and drainage structures.
Trees can play an important role in climate control. Deciduous trees planted on the south, west and east perimeters of a lot will provide shade during the summer while allowing scarce sunlight through in the winter when leaves have fallen. Evergreens, on the other hand, planted on the north and west sides of a property, can reduce winter heating costs by serving as windbreaks. Drainage is yet another issue to consider. Young trees do best when planted in good-quality, well-drained loamy soil. Heavy clays in poorly-drained sites present particular problems as many species of trees including white firs, yellowwoods, beeches, red oaks and yews will not tolerate ‘wet feet.’ In all cases, stagnant water pooling around roots can lead to ‘root rot’ caused by lack of available oxygen.
You can do a general test for soil drainage by digging a hole in the planting area and filling it with water. If the water hasn’t drained away in a couple of hours, drainage may be an issue. In areas where drainage is a particular problem, planting in raised beds of 12 to 18 inches of well-drained quality topsoil may be a solution.
Soil quality in new subdivisions often presents tree-planting problems. Construction materials, in addition to creating unsightly and difficult-to-work rubble, can alter the soils fertility by raising or lowering pH. Chemical and petroleum spills, which often occur during building construction, pose additional concerns. In cases where soil contamination is severe, the only solution may be to scrape away the contaminated soil and replace it with good quality topsoil at a depth associated with your planting objectives.
Personal taste is another key consideration. Think of how different kinds of new trees can enhance the attractiveness of your property. Make a list of the kinds of trees you admire and think about how they would look. Consider how your selection will fill in to the planting area over time. Make a few sketches or, if you don’t trust your own artistic talent, consult available landscape design software, or a landscape designer.
Next: Types of Trees »
Pruning to Correct Tree Structure
Pruning to Correct Tree Structure
Basic Questions to Consider Before Starting
Will the tree be safe after pruning?
Will environmental, insect and disease problems, as well as other predatory conditions, be adjusted to preserve the tree for a valued period of time after pruning?
Will the appearance of the tree be pleasing to the owners?
Be aware of the structural problems of the tree to be saved:Reference the items marked A through F on the sketched tree.
Recognize the degree of rot through broken stumps or rotting leaders left after storm damage, which injures the main trunk. (Note A) This damage has caused cavities, including a basil cavity, and thus further rot has developed in the center of the tree. This tree requires crown reduction to alleviate excessive leverage and stress on the weak main trunk and leaders of the tree.
After the main leaders were broken off approxinmately 25 years ago (Note A), the nourishment generated from the root system went into the development of succulent, high thin growth that is unnatural and unlimited here (Note B). This is due to the lack of abutting trees that would normally compete and restrict the tree's growth, which in most cases would over-shade the tree and cause the death of the tree through natural forest competition. However, here is a tree that we wish to save due to its unique location, historical value, or because it may be the only significant tree in the vicinity.
By inspecting the amount of decay in cavity areas (Note A), one can carefully determine the strength of the remaining trunk and thus the importance of stimulating growth of additional sapwood to strengthen the remaining cylindical sapwood structure that is suporting the tree and, of course, to determine the mount of pruningrequired.
(C,D) Notice the root system is responsible for the growth of the tree more in the direction of the water, with a more vital root system on that side. See the area marked (Note C) as ledge, where the side of the tree is thinner and less vigorous. This dictates that the initial cuts to reduce the crown of the tree will start on the left-hand side over the water and not on the right-hand side over the ledge. The area marked (Note D) demonstrates the weak growth to the right of the area and the excessive, spindly growth to the left.
(E) Weak, rotten stumps that have live growth on them should be left and not removed, except proper cuts should be made to live groth at the broken ends. These cuts will reduce, as much as possible, the drainage of moisture into the main trunk of the tree and thus somewhat limit further rot taking place in the lignified tissue of the inactivexylem.
It is important in lowering the center of gravity of the tree to balance the weakened trunk by encouraging more foliage below. This new foliage will be stimulated in this remaining lower area and branches (Note E). Allowing branches to remain in this lower area, this new foliage will manufacture food and translocate it back to the main trunk. This procedure gives strength to the cylindrical supporting system rather than making cuts close to the trunk and removing some of the structural support. These limbs may not be aesthetically pleasing, but are physicollogically important for the support of the tree. The interior branches need to be lightly pruned to have them form an attractive pattern of new growth, lower down and within the tree's structure.
Once you have appreciated all of these values and considerations, it is now time to move into the tree and start making the six or eight primary cuts throughout the crown (Note F). Start on the side of the tree over the water that needs to be brought back more vigorously, so that area is initially pruned. Those points (Note F) are the areas where the first seven cuts will be made on this tree.
Additional Steps before Pruning Commences
Structural weaknesses, such as V crotches and interior rot, should be observed carefully to help guide the degree and severity of pruning to be done.
Stand back from the tree and view it from all sides. Stand under the tree and view its inner framework. This will allow you to plan the necessary pruning procedures. Presuming that this tree is a large mature deciduous, choose approximately four to ten major cuts that will be made to preserve and establish a central leader and reduce the width of the tree in an attractive manner.
Study the interior of the tree to see small interior growth that can be preserved and stimulated when nourishment is concentrated toward this growth after the above pruning procedures have been carried out. Study the interior growth in order to develop pruning procedures that will result in an attractive, natural, and pleasing pattern of growth.
Explain anticipated additional expense for cabling, bracing, and other treatments to the client.
Long-term costs and other procedures that may need to be done in the future, such as a second pruning (probably eight to ten years after the first pruning), should be estimated.
Establish a complete understanding with the client, preferably in writing, about how the tree will look at completion of pruning specifications that conform to ANSI A300 Pruning Standards.
Basic Questions to Consider Before Starting
Will the tree be safe after pruning?
Will environmental, insect and disease problems, as well as other predatory conditions, be adjusted to preserve the tree for a valued period of time after pruning?
Will the appearance of the tree be pleasing to the owners?
Be aware of the structural problems of the tree to be saved:Reference the items marked A through F on the sketched tree.
Recognize the degree of rot through broken stumps or rotting leaders left after storm damage, which injures the main trunk. (Note A) This damage has caused cavities, including a basil cavity, and thus further rot has developed in the center of the tree. This tree requires crown reduction to alleviate excessive leverage and stress on the weak main trunk and leaders of the tree.
After the main leaders were broken off approxinmately 25 years ago (Note A), the nourishment generated from the root system went into the development of succulent, high thin growth that is unnatural and unlimited here (Note B). This is due to the lack of abutting trees that would normally compete and restrict the tree's growth, which in most cases would over-shade the tree and cause the death of the tree through natural forest competition. However, here is a tree that we wish to save due to its unique location, historical value, or because it may be the only significant tree in the vicinity.
By inspecting the amount of decay in cavity areas (Note A), one can carefully determine the strength of the remaining trunk and thus the importance of stimulating growth of additional sapwood to strengthen the remaining cylindical sapwood structure that is suporting the tree and, of course, to determine the mount of pruningrequired.
(C,D) Notice the root system is responsible for the growth of the tree more in the direction of the water, with a more vital root system on that side. See the area marked (Note C) as ledge, where the side of the tree is thinner and less vigorous. This dictates that the initial cuts to reduce the crown of the tree will start on the left-hand side over the water and not on the right-hand side over the ledge. The area marked (Note D) demonstrates the weak growth to the right of the area and the excessive, spindly growth to the left.
(E) Weak, rotten stumps that have live growth on them should be left and not removed, except proper cuts should be made to live groth at the broken ends. These cuts will reduce, as much as possible, the drainage of moisture into the main trunk of the tree and thus somewhat limit further rot taking place in the lignified tissue of the inactivexylem.
It is important in lowering the center of gravity of the tree to balance the weakened trunk by encouraging more foliage below. This new foliage will be stimulated in this remaining lower area and branches (Note E). Allowing branches to remain in this lower area, this new foliage will manufacture food and translocate it back to the main trunk. This procedure gives strength to the cylindrical supporting system rather than making cuts close to the trunk and removing some of the structural support. These limbs may not be aesthetically pleasing, but are physicollogically important for the support of the tree. The interior branches need to be lightly pruned to have them form an attractive pattern of new growth, lower down and within the tree's structure.
Once you have appreciated all of these values and considerations, it is now time to move into the tree and start making the six or eight primary cuts throughout the crown (Note F). Start on the side of the tree over the water that needs to be brought back more vigorously, so that area is initially pruned. Those points (Note F) are the areas where the first seven cuts will be made on this tree.
Additional Steps before Pruning Commences
Structural weaknesses, such as V crotches and interior rot, should be observed carefully to help guide the degree and severity of pruning to be done.
Stand back from the tree and view it from all sides. Stand under the tree and view its inner framework. This will allow you to plan the necessary pruning procedures. Presuming that this tree is a large mature deciduous, choose approximately four to ten major cuts that will be made to preserve and establish a central leader and reduce the width of the tree in an attractive manner.
Study the interior of the tree to see small interior growth that can be preserved and stimulated when nourishment is concentrated toward this growth after the above pruning procedures have been carried out. Study the interior growth in order to develop pruning procedures that will result in an attractive, natural, and pleasing pattern of growth.
Explain anticipated additional expense for cabling, bracing, and other treatments to the client.
Long-term costs and other procedures that may need to be done in the future, such as a second pruning (probably eight to ten years after the first pruning), should be estimated.
Establish a complete understanding with the client, preferably in writing, about how the tree will look at completion of pruning specifications that conform to ANSI A300 Pruning Standards.
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