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Rose Bush Suckers

Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening High Desert

Dealing with Rose Suckers

JM Perez By JM Perez1 min read1.4K views

Early this year I blogged about a ‘Little Pete’ Rose Sucker I discovered around the base of the mother plant. Unlike previous transplants, this one was unsuccessful. A few days later I discovered another sucker rapidly growing on the opposite side of the plant (as you can see on the picture below). It took the sucker less than a week to grow to that length. This time the sucker emerged from the rootstock.

We used a pruner to cut off the sucker, which we now realized that it wasn’t the most efficient method as it just encouraged and stimulated more sucker growth. This morning I found a new sucker growth and tomorrow I will implement the recommended method to getting rid of the sucker. Digging and removing the soil around the roots where the sucker is originating and then pulling, twisting and/or tearing it off.

‘Little Pete’ Rose Sucker.
‘Little Pete’ Rose Sucker (March 2013).

If you are still having issues dealing with Rose Suckers or identifying them, take a couple of minutes to view this educational video about Removing Sucker Growth from Roses.

Happy Columbus Day and have a great week Gardening!

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JM Perez By JM Perez
Plant Propagation Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening High Desert

‘Little Pete’ Rose Sucker

JM Perez By JM Perez2 min read608 views

Today I finally pulled out what was left of my Snow White Tea Tree in my backyard. I have been suspecting for a while now that something wasn’t right with the plants and decided to give them a few more weeks. It turns out that some White Curl Grubs were happily and vigorously feeding on the roots of the plants which resulted in the plant’s death. I also pulled out what was left of my Crimson Rose Tea Tree which I was growing in a barrel in my front yard. They were beautiful drought-tolerant plants and a wonderful addition to my garden. I have had those plants for four years and every year, during this time, they would be covered in blooms.

It seems like every time I loose a plant in my garden, I get blessed with a new one from my garden. Just a few weeks ago, I discovered a Rose sucker around the base of one of my favorite Rosebush. Last year I gained two more Roses using the propagation by simple layering method. This year on the other hand, my ‘Little Pete’ Rose Tree has a Sucker which is rapidly growing just a small distance from the mother plant. I carefully removed it along with its roots and transplanted it in a pot to create a new Rosebush. My first thought was to just separate the sucker and the mother plant and allow both to grow along side, but I quickly realized that the space between both wasn’t enough to allow them to thrive. It’s such a beautiful Rose and I hope my new growth survives.

Click here, here and here to learn about Propagation by Simple and Tip Layering.

'Little Pete' Rose.
‘Little Pete’ Rose.

On a much happier note, we are weed free! I will blog about it in a different post and let you know how we got rid of weeds on our half-acre property in less than two weeks (using just a hoe, rake and a hand shovel).

Happy gardening!

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JM Perez By JM Perez