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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Guide Weather Subscribe Contact Us February 24, 2005 Spring is coming, and it's time to Stop and trim the roses By Denise Baratta Ashland Daily Tidings When the first golden yellow flowers of the Forsythia shrub open in the Rogue Valley in early spring, it's the signal to local gardeners to dust off their pruning shears and don a heavy pair of gloves. George Jennings trims one of 750 rose plants on his Medford property. Generally the month of February is the ideal time to prune back roses in the Rogue Valley. Photos by Denise Baratta | Ashland Daily Tidings It's time to trim the roses. No one knows this more than George and Mary Jennings, who spend weeks pruning or shaping their expansive garden of 750 roses on Hillcrest Road in Medford. George Jennings, a retired physician, says he prefers the large grandiflora or hybrid tea-type roses, while Mary's love goes out to the mini variety. Each tends approximately 350 plants on their own - which began this year in early February. The three-week effort is a labor of love for the two, who sport personalized license plates on their cars that read "MINI RZ" and "ROSE DR." Both are consulting rosarians and master gardeners and will be among those presenting their knowledge of the flowers during a seminar March 5 at the Jackson County Extension Service. Participants in the workshop will learn proper pruning techniques for differing varieties such as climbers, mini's and grandiflora's. While common wisdom holds that most trees and shrubs can be pruned in late fall, not true for Southern Oregon roses, George Jennings says. "We usually prune in the Rogue Valley the third week of February, when the Forsythia blooms," he says, although this year's mild winter has allowed for some pruning to begin as early as January. Jennings is not shy when it comes to trimming his own large plants. Thick, woody canes are clipped off without remorse, and new shoots some might be inclined to keep are also discarded if they don't fit the overall design of the bush, allow for the optimal amount of summer blooms or are subject to disease. "My favorite saying is if it didn't do well last year, it won't do well this year," he says, adding that getting rid of the old and keeping the new is his best advice. All rose bushes need some type of pruning, or they can fall victim to insect or rotting diseases, decreased flower production and raggedy appearance. Jennings recommends removing all leaves and dead or diseased wood from the previous growing season, getting rid of any cane smaller than a pencil, and sealing the cuts with white glue or latex paint to keep the pesky cane borer insect, common to Southern Oregon, from digging into the stalks. The average pruning height for floribundas and hybrid teas is between 12 and 18 inches. The Oregon State University Extension Service recommends cuts should be made at a 45 degree angle above a strong outer bud and aimed upward from the inner side of the bush to push growth outward. Canes growing towards the center or touching each other should also be removed. Mini roses only need dead or diseased canes cut and the rose hips removed, while climbers should be pruned in autumn. To learn more about rose pruning, plant selection and planting, the Jackson County OSU extension office is holding a workshop from 9 a.m. to noon March 5 at 569 Hanley Road in Central Point. The fee is $5 per person and attendees are asked to bring pruners and gloves. DailyTidings.com Home Page Archives | Revels | Classifieds | Real Estate Guide | Weather | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2005 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Slippers Women's & Men's Slippers Ceramic Piggy Banks heloc libor rate Calenders 2005 Calender 2005 Accelerate Weightloss Products Memory Foam Mattress afsa studentloans home equity loans teleconferencing W2 Forms fasa student loans Matchmaking & Dating Scripts African Safari Conference Calls - $50/Month Security Systems student loan consolidation wholesale diamonds Currancy Exchange web conferencing Online Casinos Community Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams