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Questions & Answers - Flowers P - R

Passion Flower

From: Linda B, UK

I have a passion flower growing in my greenhouse at the moment. It is a very healthy looking plant. Could you please tell me if I have to cut this down like you do clematis in the winter.

From Rosemary, UK
We have many passion flowers both in the green house and outside. Do you know what variety . Ceruala and constace elliott are hardy. The roots are the most important areas. If you know the variety or can describe it , I can be of more help.

From Elizabeth, UK
Hello Linda, I too have Passion Flowers growing in my Greenhouse but mine is heated by heated benches only and my P. plants are in pots standing on the floor. I cut mine down when the leaves are looking a bit worse for wear give thema good water, covering them with fleece as the weather gets colder.
I did have three plants but one gave up the ghost last winter. I am wondering if I should lift the two left onto the bench but perhaps raised a little off the direct warmth. I have two Hoya plants which seem to respond very well to this treatment so perhaps it may work with the Passion Flowers. Best of luck ............... Elizabeth.
PS I put fleece over the Hoya when it is particularly cold.

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Phoenix Canariensis	From: Craig T, UK
	Please could you help! I have a phoenix canariensis which is looking quite poorly.It is potted in well drained soil , there are no vine weevil present . It,s situated in an N.N.E facing garden which has the sun from sunrise to lunch time. My only thought is that the frost has damaged it as I did not take it in during winter. Your guidence would be most appreciated. Many thanks
	From Alex M, UK Hi Julie, I think you already know the answer,... 'My only thought is that the frost has damaged it as I did not take it in during winter' - they are only tolerant down to 45degF (7degC). You do not say if it is dead, you could coddle it for another year and see what happens, be careful with the watering as in the state described it won't take up water as quickly as normal. Sorry I can't be of more assistance..........A Can any other Gardeners Club members help Craig out? Click here if you can help

Primulas & Polyanthus	From: Jackie, UK
	Hi I wondered if you could help me. I have a very small garden and loads of primulas & polyanthus and I would like to keep them for next year but do not have any room to replant them any where else until the Autumn. What else can I do with them? Thank you
	From Alex M Hi again Jackie. Can you find a shady corner in your garden to store them in boxes? All that is required is get sufficient boxes about 4"-6"(100-150mm) deep and fill them with potting compost and place your plants in these. It would help if you divided/thinned them at this stage getting rid of any suspect/damaged plants at the same time. The advantage of splitting them now is you will do less damage to the new rootball at planting out time so they get off to a better start before the onset of winter. Can any other Gardeners Club members help Jackie out? Click here if you can help

Rhodochiton	From: Glyn, UK
	I have grown several Rhodochiton plants from seed this year. Should I pinch out the leader in order to make the plant bush out or will it do it by itself? I got the seed from a plant we bought last year which grew to 7ft. and was superb and covered in flower, only trouble was it got infested with white fly!
	From Yvonne, UK They usually bush out by themselves. As you have several plants you could try both ways. Try them in a hanging basket - they look great and attract a lot of attention! I grow them from saved seeds every year, but they will overwinter indoors or in a frost free shed and make a large impressive plant. Can any other Gardeners Club members help Glyn out? Click here if you can help

Rhododendron	From: Freddie L, UK
	We have a Rhododendron 'Sir Charles Lemon' (planted approx five years ago) which has so far refused to flower. It grows in the same bed as other rhodos which flower very well. It is otherwise very healthy and is quite prolific. I feed every Autumn with a proprietary feed. Any suggestions please?
	From Paul R, UK Sir Charles Lemon needs full sun. Assuming it is fed with sequestrene it sounds like it is making too much leaf. You could try some medium-to-hard pruning in the spring to encourage it to make the right growth for flowering in 2001. Or you could lift it in a large barrel, prune it and move it into full sun if its not getting it in the border. Can any other Gardeners Club members help Freddie out? Click here if you can help

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Rhododendrons	From Bella Jean, UK
	When is a good time to prune a PJM bush?
	From Clare, Gardeners Club Secretary* If pruning is needed, I would just trim off the old or faded flowers for appearance. The safest time to prune rhododendrons is in the Spring, after they bloom. Rhododendrons start to form the next years flower buds in mid summer so pruning after mid summer could remove next year's flower buds. Can any Gardeners Club members help out? Click here if you can help

Rose	From: Lorina G, UK
	Hi there. I have a question about a banksia rose. I have two roses in my garden on a south facing fence, quite protected. I have had one for 6 years and the other for 5. In all this time, I have had no flowers on either plant. I was advised one year not to feed them to encourage them to flower, that didn't work. Previous to that I had fed them in spring and summer with a rose food. I am thinking of removing them completely in autumn unless you can give me some suggestions. Thank you
	From Alex M, UK Hi Lorina. You said ; I was advised one year not to feed them to encourage them to flower, that didn't work'. I would agree with the above information you have been given, but I do not think you have allowed the rose time enough to react to the starvation treatment. Basically what you are dealing with is a 'wild rose' and in the wild all they thrive upon is a mulch of leaf mould (their own leaf droppings) to keep them 'fed' and they are never pruned. What I am saying is ignore the plant do not feed,water or prune it until such time as it flowers. You say you are thinking of moving it... if you do, plant it in a piece of poor, unfertilized ground - my guess is at the moment your ground is too fertile and you are getting leaves at the expense of flowers. With the way you are thinking at the moment, as I see it, you have nothing to lose and possibly everything to gain. Sorry if I have appeared a bit condescending but it is rather difficult to envisage your situation fully hence my answer.......A Can any other Gardeners Club members help Lorina out? Click here if you can help

Rose Memorial	From Caroline, UK
	I am wanting to name a rose after my Nana and don't know how to go about it. Her name is Grace. Although there are several roses on another website with Grace in the name, I would love for one to be called Grace Palmer. Is this possible?
	From Clare, Gardeners club Secretary* There are a number of sites where, provided the name isn't already taken, you can name a rose.Try visiting one of the following: www.dickson-roses.co.uk www.topbranch.co.uk www.name-your-own-rose.com Can any Gardeners Club members help out? Click here if you can help

Roses

From Fiona, UK

Hello,

Your newsletter this month offers advice on pruning roses but there is a
term there I don't understand. You mention getting rid of the suckers, what
are they or how would I recognise them. I am afraid that makes no sense at
all to me!!

Thanks for any advice you can offer,

From Clare, Gardeners Club Secretary
Occasionally roses throw up new shoots from the base that don't look anything like the other shoots. These are suckers and they will damage your plants. Suckers are light green and their leaves usually look smaller than the cultivated variety. They will grow from beneath the graft (the bit where the shoots grow out of the root). Follow the shoots down to soil level and then dig down to where it arises from the root using a hand trowel. If possible rip the sucker from the root as this also removes the section of the base of the stem which carries lots of dormant buds. Where the sucker is simply cut off these will immediately begin to grow and create more trouble. If you grow standard roses look out for the suckers appearing on the stems of them too and snap them off as soon as possible

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Roses	From Tina, UK
	I do not know much about gardening and am in need of a bit of advice about roses. Recently I was bought two rose bushes ( I say bushes but I don't know) unfortunately they did not have any little cards in the pots for me to know what they are exactly but I do know that one is called 'Paul Scarlet' and the other is a white rose. I have put them in separate containers of a nice size so that I can find where they like in the garden and then I will put them in the ground but I really need some advice on how to look after them properly, ie feeding, pruning etc. They are memorial roses for our sons who recently passed away so I am very keen to learn more about to keep them looking beatiful! Many thanks Tina
	From Angela, Gardeners Club Secretary* The following sites are very useful for advice on the care of roses:- http://www.roses.co.uk/rose/tips.htm http://www.davidaustinroses.com http://www.rosebuddies.com http://www.name-your-own-rose.com/care.html There is also a lot of useful advice in the previous Q & As section on our site:- http://www.gardenersclub.co.uk/qandas/flowersp-r.html Can any Gardeners Club members help out? Click here if you can help

Rose Bush	From: Alan W, Spain
	We live in the South Eastern part of Spain where the area is very much desert like, my question is, why do some of the leaves at the top of my rose bush show clear patches of holes, as though bitten, and yet I cannot find any obvious bugs on them. I have noticed a similar problem with my Clematis.
	From Caroline Dear Alan, it sounds to me like you have just got some leaf-cutting bees! As long as the plants look healthy and you can see no sign of pests then there should be no need to worry. Can any other Gardeners Club members help Alan out? Click here if you can help

Rose Bush - Pruning	From: William, UK
	I am about to prune my rose bushes. However, I have a spare bed to fill, and I was wondering if I could plant the cuttings from the pruned bushes in this bed. I would be grateful if you would advise me how easy/successful this is and give me a few tips to this end. Thanks and regards
	From Michael Barratt - the Gardeners Club resident gardener Cuttings for Roses generally have to be `hardwood` or mature wood, and are taken in the autumn. However although this can be done and they grow true to type, they are often weaker in their growth. The cuttings should be about 9-12? long. Strip off all the leaves bar a few at the top and place into a `v` slit 6-8? deep with some coarse grit in the bottom. If you are considering filling the whole bed with cuttings, then they can be placed individually using a spade to create the slit to place the cutting into. Leaving it as late as this may not give such a high success rate as if it was undertaken in November. Watering will have to be monitored especially during the summer, so that the cuttings do not dry out. Lifting in the autumn can then be done to move them elsewhere. From Jane, UK I have grown many roses from prunings from my rose bushes. They usually seem to have at least a 50% success rate so it is well worth trying. If you can trim them top and bottom (with a straigh cut at the bottom and a slanting cut at the top, so you dont put them in upside down!) I then make a slit trench with a spade and slide the cuttings down in it. I put mine in a seed bed near my greenhouse in the shade so they don't dry out too much and keep them watered. Good luck. Can any other Gardeners Club members help William out? Click here if you can help

Rose Climber	From: Stephen C, UK
	I have a rose (climber) in a old stone sink, which I was told would do very well. The rose is yellow, but I can't remember its name. It's in a very sunny position and gets watered in the morning and last thing at night. Its been in the sink for two and a half years but as time is going by the poor rose is looking very much worse for wear. Can anybody offer any help or sugestions?
	From Elizabeth, UK Hello Stephen, read of your rose problem. It may too late but get that poor Rose out of that sink and put it into a bucket of water whilst you prepare a new home for it ... .... a big hole. It's a bit difficult to give you measurements but if you stand with your legs apart then that will give you an idea of the size - depth ?..... that really depends on what your soil is like . If it looks hard and inhospitable then dig down to about 1+1/2 spade depth, fill it about half full with good soil, something hospitable like well rotted manure or compost or the bagged Compost from your local Garden Centre. If the soil is dry then give it a really good water (fill the hole up) and leave it until the next day. Prune the Rose back so that it can concentrate on making new roots and try it for size in it's new home. Place a stick or a broom handle across the hole and place the rose so that the join in its stem reaches the stick. Spread its roots out and fill in with your soil/compost with some grit added , firming gently until it looks comfortable . If you have got proper manure then make a ring of it around the Rose, if not some sort of feed ( the newly arrived , none smelly pelleted Chicken sh....from your local Garden Centre) is excellent. Before you leave your Rose, say something encouraging to it and keep your fingers crossed. Leave it alone a few days then check to see if it is still firm in the ground. I do hope this step by step advice hasn't irritated you. It would only have taken me a couple of minutes to tell you face to face but it's taken me ages to write it all down. Now that you have noticed that your Rose wasn't looking very well I'm sure it will respond. Should you not have a suitable place for it then make it a new home in another container (with drainage) even a large garden type bucket will do ..... you can always plant some Ivy round the edge to make it respectable. Do let meknow how you get on, I would be most interested. Best of luck anyway. Can any other Gardeners Club members help Stephen out? Click here if you can help

Rose Cuttings	From: Jim H, UK
	When is the best time to take a cutting from a climbing rose?
	From Elizabeth, UK Hello Jim H. I have been taking cuttings for many a bright year and my maxim is..... if it's free then it's a good time to take a cutting. That is the broad view of course but if your Roses are still looking fresh and green then you should be alright. I have some shrub roses which flower early on. I have pruned the flower shoots off and they have now regrown ........... these are the ones I shall use for cuttings - about six to a pot. I am fortunate in having a 5ft. gap between the Garage and a shed. This is where I have a table on which I keep my cuttings.It is out of the worst of the weather yet open to the rain.. If harsh frosts are forecast I try to give them a bit of protection with fleece or newspapers - around the pots, not necessarily the cuttings. I hope this may be of some help to you .... I wish you luck anyway. Elizabeth. Can any other Gardeners Club members help Jim out? Click here if you can help

Roses - Blackspot	From: Amanda, UK
	I grow roses, unfortunately every year they seem to suffer with blackspot, has any one got any ideas on how to get rid of it without having to use lots of chemicals
	From Melanie, UK Hi Amanda. I have read that tea tree essential oil can be sprayed, 10 drops to 4 litres of water, as it anti-fungal, anti-bacterial and anti-anything else you care to name! Worth a try, and if this fails, well take comfort in knowing that blackspot only occurs in relatively unpolluted areas - my roses used to suffer but no longer do so. Can any other Gardeners Club members help Amanda out? Click here if you can help

Roses- honeymoon	From: Shirley D, UK
	I have two new Honeymoon roses, bought from rose supplier by my husband for Christmas. They are still in the containers they were purchased int. One has produced shoots, the other hasn't, not worried about that but Do I need to plant these out now. I am going to the US on Wed for 2 weeks and need to know whether I can leave them till I get back. Because of my garden layout it will be difficult to plant them in a suitable place, they have a gorgeous scent. I had one at my last house. So I was going to put at least one of them in a pot to go at my front door. South facing. Now I have some year old garden compost which looks really good. So apart from drainage do I need to add anything else or will this be Ok to use as is??? The pot is at approx 52cm dia.20 inches, X 41cm deep, 16 inches. So 2 real Questions in summary. 1] Do I have to plant them out now? 2] Can I use my home made compost alone in the pot? Thanks
	From Michael Barratt - the Gardeners Club resident gardener The roses can stay in the pots for several months provided they are kept watered where necessary. They would benefit from a light feed as they begin to produce more leaf. A very light sprinkle of rose food would be ideal. As far as the compost is concerned, no problem, but mix it 50/50 with the garden soil and a little can be placed around the soil surface as a mulch - do not allow it to touch the stem. Plant only to the nursery mark in the pot. From Mr Clark, UK I would mix your garden compost with small stone chips for soil aeration. Buy a plastic dustbin, cut the bottom off and place it on a vacant cultivated part of the back garden - press the edges of the bin into the soil - 1/2 fill the bin with the mix. Then get someone to hold the rose bushes out of their present containers and move them over to the bin. Fill up the bin over the root area base of the plants. Water-in well. Left in their present pots they could suffer from water drought or water logging in your absence. You no doubt will see an improvement in their growth etc. Set them in where they are to go on your return. Can any other Gardeners Club members help Shirley out? Click here if you can help

Roses - move	From: Christine, UK
	Last autumn I did 6 rose cutting from my best roses and put them in a nursery bed, in the spring I had 4 that had shots on them, but as the end of spring came I only had one left and that is doing very well , I have had 2 blooms on it so far and more new shots. Can you please tell me when is the time to move it to its permanent place. I intend to try some more cuttings this year and hope to have more luck.
	From Michael Barratt - the Gardeners Club resident gardener The best time to move your Rose to its permanent position will be in the Autumn, ideally between November and Christmas. Be sure not to plant in an area previously occupied by roses as they will not grow very well. Put a handful of bonemeal in when planting and reduce in height to about a foot to stop wind-rock. In the Spring it can be pruned further if necessary. Can any Gardeners Club members help Christine out? Click here if you can help

Roses - rust	From: Rhian, UK
	I have a bit of a problem with a rambling rose in my garden. I think it's got rust. On the leaves are lots of powdery oranges dots. I have taken most of them off but the few remaining ones seem to be developing it. I am reluctant to spray the rose as it is growing up a pergola which is right next to a pond which has fish in it. Do you have any ideas? If I just pull off the leaves is the problem likely to return next year? Last year there was no sign of it. Thanks
	Michael, UK This one can be difficult to control. Good plant husbandry as you are currently undertaking is essential. Spray with a systemic fungicide as opposed to a contact one at regular intervals and continue to feed to encourage new growth. Rust on Roses is more prevalent when they are in a sheltered position. There needs to be good airflow through bushes to really keep this at bay, otherwise when the right weather conditons prevail it will return. Spores will overwinter on stems and leaves. Try and give them a winter wash with fungicide in the Autumn after leaf fall. Can any other Gardeners Club members help Rhian out? Click here if you can help

Roses - rust	From: Rose, Vancouver British Columbia
	I have rust on my Ingrid Bergman Hybrid Tea Rose. Can you please tell me the best way to get rid of it. I have been spraying it with a fungicide spray and removing the leaves but the new growth is still getting rust on it. I dont leave the leaves near the plant, I take them right off the property. I live on the west coast of Canada where the weather is much the same as in the UK.
	This one can be difficult to control. Good plant husbandry as you are currently undertaking is essential. Spray with a systemic fungicide as opposed to a contact one at regular intervals and continue to feed to encourage new growth. Rust on Roses is more prevalent when they are in a sheltered position. There needs to be good airflow through bushes to really keep this at bay, otherwise when the right weather conditons prevail it will return. Spores will overwinter on stems and leaves. Try and give them a winter wash with fungicide in the Autumn after leaf fall.
	Thanks ever so much for helping me with my problem. The expert gardener you referred me to was excellent. Rose.