Training climbing rose?

7 years ago

last modified: 7 years ago

Hello. First year planting roses, so lots of questions. Here I have two questions:

1. My dormant, bare root roses have 3 or 4 big canes that were sniped a few inches off the ground. Buds off of these are already waking up and growing. Now I have read all about main canes and lateral canes. My first question is regarding the growth off of the sniped main canes: Will I treat these as laterals in the future, or since the main cane has been cut so close to the ground, will these essentially become new main canes? Must all main canes come from the ground directly, or is it ever possible for main canes to branch off close to the ground into two or three main canes?

2. My second question is regarding a climbing potted rose that appears to have all the main canes pruned at about a 3 feet off the bottom. These are very thick older canes that are producing laterals that are already in bloom. It will be impossible to train these canes as they are too thick and going straight up. So then, will I eventually just have to cut these at the ground in winter and only train the new softer main canes?

Sorry for the long questions, but as I said, I'm totally new to roses in general.

Many thanks!

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Comments (4)

K S 7a Yakima
7 years ago
Hi edanz,

The new canes that are sprouting off of the old, pruned-back canes (whether those old canes are 3 inches or 3 feet) should become your new main canes. Let them grow long, and don't prune them at the ends. These canes should grow long. You can gently train these canes to do what you want, but be careful not to bend them sharply or tie them too tightly. As you train the canes in a more horizontal fashion, the laterals will sprout along the sides of the canes. It is possible for a cane that started as a lateral to become a main cane. Not all of a climber's main canes need to be from basals (those canes that sprout from the base of the rose) but basal canes are good because they renew the structure of the rose, providing fresh, strong new canes that will be very productive. As the rose matures and (hopefully) throws up lots of new canes, you can selectively remove some of the old canes during spring pruning. With your young rose I suggest you avoid pruning it, and only deadhead blooms coming off of laterals this year.
subk3
7 years ago
Paul Zimmerman has a great series of videos on pruning. Here's the one about pruning climbers. It's the best explanation and demonstration I've seen on the subject:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rf7F5qhChFM
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edanz
Original Author
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
Thank you all for your comments! I have actually watched a lot of paul's videos. They make a lot of sense. Once I received my roses though, I began to think there may be a gray area when it comes to laterals vs main canes, because, at least at first, all the initial growth will come from "laterals" coming off a pruned main cane at the bottom.

Perhaps by the end of the first three years, there will be so many new basal main canes that my question will seem moot. But knowing that the first growth off the pruned main canes will act as main canes of their own helps a lot. It also stands to reason, since on most plants a heading cut usually stimulates a few buds to grow vigorously and resume apical growth.

Thanks again!
ac91z6
7 years ago
This is a really good question, and answers! Edanz, thanks for asking this, I'm saving your thread for future reference!