Roses - prune? fertilize?

[Higgs Boson]

Climate here in So.Calif coastal has been anomalous (sp?) last few years. H ot, cold, hot, no respecter of seasons.

Right now, it's not even our version of "winter"; more like 70-80 daytime t emp. (Not that I'm complaining about the sunshine, but we are in deep troub le for rain locally as well as in the mountains. Little or no snowpack, bi g trouble for domestic water use and for agriculture.)

My roses did not do their usual holiday season flush; just a few blooms.

I neglected to feed several months ago. So now I don't know what the hell to do! Normally I wouldn't feed until some time after I prune (usually aro und 3rd week in January.

Is it safest to just proceed normally, rather than screw them up by feeding now and pruning later?

Help!

HB

[David Hare-Scott]

I have no experience of roses having a flush of blooms in late autumn or winter, I live in a warm temperate area but even so they are leafless and dormant at that time. Do yours lose their leaves? When? When do they bud with the new season's growth?

In general there is no point in feeding unless the season is such that they will grow strongly. Here I prune when the new buds are first starting to form so you can see where the leaders will go for new growth. I hardly water during winter as they are dormant. Once the buds burst and the new leaves are going strongly (about 4-6 weeks after pruning) I feed and pay more attention to watering as required.

D

[David E. Ross]

Prune right now. I've pruned 8 of my 14 roses. One (a miniature) will not be pruned.

As soon as leaf buds start to open, feed.

[Higgs Boson]

I posted a reply but it bounced as an email? Working on different computer -- transition from XP to 7 is fraught.

Will wait to see if this goes through.

HB

[Higgs Boson]

David Ross -- Are you noticing anything different last few years? IOW, have you always pruned on that schedule?

TIA

HB

[David E. Ross]

Yes. I generally start by Christmas, prune at least on rose on New Year, and try to finish by 15 January. My peach tree is done. Four roses are still in bloom, but they will be cut this coming weekend. Then I must do my three grape vines.

What is different is when the first bloom occurs after pruning. Generally, roses had their first blooms in the second half of April. In in 2013, they were well into bloom a month before that.

Besides an extreme drought, this is a relatively warm winter here in southern California. So far, there have been only 100 hours of below

45F temperatures since the beginning of November and none since 21 December. By this date last year, we had slightly more than 181 hours. Two years ago on this date, we had less than 86 hours. I am quite concerned about my peach tree, which requires abouit 300 hours of winter chill.

[Higgs Boson]

Seriously, David, would it be worth your while to bank the surrounding area out to the drip line with ice cubes? It would be expensive, yes, but might help get you a crop this year.

I had a peach tree for 15 - more like 20 - years that bore up a storm; couldn't keep up with the picking. And my area is much milder than yours. Can't remember my variety; it was a golden oldie standard cling. What variety is yours?

HB

[David Hare-Scott]

I think a portable cooler would be the thing, the kind they hire for parties etc. All you need to do is turn on its side and poke the tree in through the door. Connect up with a long extension lead or better still a generator. The kind you pedal would be best for the environment. As a side benefit you keep warm yourself and get fit. I am starting to think this would have wide application. Perhaps special coolers that come with an insulated tent would sell well. Seriously, David.

Serious David

[David E. Ross]

The roots don't need chill as much as the flower and leaf buds. I would need a cage about 8 ft tall and 10 ft in diameter, filled to the top with ice -- from November until mid-March.

The variety is 'Santa Barbara', which is a low-chill variety. However, "low-chill" does not mean "no chill". This one produces much nicer fruit (when the squirrels let me have some) than its predecessor 'Ventura'. The fruit is about as good as 'Golden Blush' -- my first peach in that location -- which I could no longer find. All three were free-stone. 'Santa Barbara' and 'Golden Blush' are sweet, juicy, and quite flavorful. 'Ventura' is less juicy.

Peach trees reach their peak of production in about 12 years and then decline. Many commercial peach orchards start over after 15 years. I keep mine a bit longer.

[Higgs Boson]

Let's hear it for typical Aussie ingenuity!

HB