The weather continues to be spectacular here in Ga. Yesterday I tackled the rose pruning. Feb. is the month and I was just in time. The roses are about to leaf out with a weeks worth of warm temps.
Our center garden, aka the Italian garden, is made up with old fashioned shrub and tree form roses. Every March, I take cuttings of the existing boxwood's and root them to make a border around the beds. We fill in the beds with peonies and seasonal veggies and herbs.
When I prune the roses, I cut the dead wood off, remove any decesed branches and remove the oldest canes. I also cut back any crossing branches to allow light and air into the center of the bush. I also remove any pealing bark to encourage new , vigorous canes. We top dress with composted horse manure. Almost forgot... I put a dab of waterproof wood glue on the cuts over pencil width to prevent borers from entering the plants.
As you can see, all this hard work pays off come June. Lets hope March doesn't bring below freezing temps. Keep your fingers crossed.
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