Rose suckers?

11 years ago

The stems are starting to green up on the bottom of the bushes, some have a deep burgundy stem. I've always wondered about this: in the Spring when the bushes start to grow, towards the very base of the bush--there is a very soft bright pink/red stem(s) that seem to be coming from underneath the ground. I don't know if these turn into the basil growth or if these are suckers that need to be plucked off. Thanks.

Featured Answer

fduk_gw UK zone 3 (US zone 8)

11 years ago

No, if the graft is below soil then it could be still either. Suckers are only an issue with grafted roses. Suckers come from the roots, and as they are from vigourous varieties can out grow the original plant. Basal canes come from the base of the plant, on a grafted rose that will be above the graft. If the plant is ownroot you can still get suckers but all it means is that you can eventually have two plants, or a great big mass of rose.

Get a hand trowel and very carefully dig down around it till you find the origin. If it comes from below the graft, or the roots, it's a sucker. If not, carefully rebury it. It's worth digging down till you see the attachment point because the way to remove suckers is to tear them off at the attachment point. Tear, not cut.

Colour is not a great way to to tell suckers from canes - I've a rose whose new growth is always light green, no hint of red, and yet it threw it's first basal this spring (it's own root so I can be completely sure) and that new growth was red to start, now greening up.

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Comments (10)

User
11 years ago
Is the graft knob above or below the soil line? If it is buried you will have to excavate some soil to determine from whence this sprout originates. Hope it's not a sucker.
nickjoseph Milwaukee, WI
Original Author
11 years ago
I get these every season & normally just pull it off. It has never affected the rose bushes.
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nickjoseph Milwaukee, WI
Original Author
11 years ago
Graft knob on these are below the soil.

I'm confused as to how to know if these are suckers. Do you know how I would determine if this is a sucker or a basil growth??
nickjoseph Milwaukee, WI
Original Author
11 years ago
Okay, from my research, it sounds like if they are coming from under the ground, it is a sucker & I have to get it off.
jacqueline9CA
11 years ago
I agree it has nothing to do with the color of the new shoots - lots of roses have reddish new shoots. What I would do is let them grow, and see if they are the same blooms as the main rose. If they are, leave them alone. If they are red, say, and the main rose is white, then you can dig down next to where they are coming up and cut them off under the ground only where they are coming from the large root - cut or tear them off so that there is nothing left of them.

Jackie
nickjoseph Milwaukee, WI thanked jacqueline9CA
nickjoseph Milwaukee, WI
Original Author
11 years ago
I guess I should try & be more clear. The suckers (or what I always assumed were suckers) always start on ground level or way at the bottom of the bush & are not thick & sturdy & harder like a normal rose bush branch. In fact they are softer & breakable. I've had basil which is a much thicker, sturdier burgundy type stem that seems to start higher up than what I thought were suckers. I used to wonder about the dark burgundy color thicker stem that grew on a mostly green bush. Yet the red roses were identical to the other greener stems &gorgeous. I think sometimes I am so dumb about roses even though I've been tending to about 12-13 bushes & digging out dead ones & replanting over 20 years. We inherited 12 rose bushes planted along side our brick home (south side--good for sun & brick house protects them). Appreciate all the help folks!
jkellydallas
11 years ago
"Yet the red roses were identical to the other greener stems & gorgeous."

I don't see the problem.
nickjoseph Milwaukee, WI
Original Author
11 years ago
"Yet the red roses were identical to the other greener stems & gorgeous.">>>>Those were the branches that I said I believe were basil branches, so no; that's not the problem I was referring to. It was the breakable, soft pink growth at the bottom of the bush next to the bush on the ground.
seil zone 6b MI
11 years ago
If they are grafted roses and the graft is buried below ground then it is possible these are the correct variety and not root stock coming up. Usually root stock will come up a bit of a distance from the bud union but good new basal breaks from the graft will be closer in to the bud union. Being red or whitish is normal. They haven't had enough light yet to turn green. Once they get bigger, more mature and get more sun they will green up. The only way to know for sure if those new shoots are from the graft is to dig around them and see where they are coming from, above or below the graft. It would be a terrible shame to take off perfectly good new canes on the chance that they are root stock. Check first!
nickjoseph Milwaukee, WI thanked seil zone 6b MI