You can keep an eye on the growth of both sets of branches. You may not know that nearly all the roses in this country are grafted onto a vigorous wild rose (r.canina var.laxa) which can, in some cases, eventually overtake the scion (the grafted rose. I don't think this is happening here and, in fact, this sort of growth pattern (of a large thick basal cane with little laterals) is entirely normal and what you would expect from a rose which had been cut back hard. When the leaves appear, look to see if the thick cane has 5 or 7 leaflets. Check if there is any difference between the leaves on the thin canes. It might be that the large cane is actually a sucker coming off the rootstock (although I doubt it). Also, cut the long cane back by a third sometime in March. If you run your fingers down the cane, you will feel little bud growths under the outer bark - try to cut just above one of these buds. Then wait. Once the sap starts rising and the rose emerges from dormancy, you should see the formation of branching canes (laterals). Until then, don't worry - your rose is almost certainly absolutely fine - just needs some time and maybe a little balanced fertiliser in April.
One of the amazing things about bonsai work is the ability to keep the leaves in some sort of proportion to the rest of the plant. I find this astonishing because I am accustomed to doing the exact opposite - chopping back topgrowth to increase the leaf size (pawlonia, catalpa, cotinus, even dogwoods). It is quite astounding how differently the plants respond to either root trimming versus pruning the top growth. A pawlonia leaf - normally around 6inches or so across, can increase it's surface area to as much as 2feet across, just by cutting the top growth back to the ground, while dogwoods and smokebushes (cotinus) are regularly cut back to produce huge leaves (and brighter juvenile stem growth). I got the impression that dwarfing the leaf size is as essential as training the woody growth into gnarly mini-trees.
i think the thing is you can "fix" the leaves to some extent at the start with choice of cultivar, or right at the end of the process (like if you show trees and stuff) by strategic defoliation. i've been surprised at how well the ash leaves reduce by themselves without any "work" on my part.
buds just on the cusp, but someone else has done all the hard work of getting the structure in place "just so". i'll try and get a pic if i can.
exactly where our side of the country has the edge
then a rainwater collection/diversion feed to that and i'm set I grew a field maple (acer campestre) from seed and even now, in its 6th year (3rd in the ground), it is still only 15inches high with teeny little leaves which could be mistaken for a hawthorn, while the pines (lacebark and Scots) have also stayed very dwarf...so yep, I can see that some species and cultivars appear to be more sympathetic to the process. (avoids rabbit hole).
I won't even walk down the same side of the street as the bonsai shop in town for fear of getting sucked down that rabbit hole
Will ask my orchid fanatic D-i-L.
Will ask my orchid fanatic D-i-L.
) Daffodils and crocuses everywhere. Even had some sun either side of the wind and hail. Won't be till after Easter, which suits me with lambing coming up, but gonna ask if I can stick stuff outside before then long as it's in pots. In my head I have already planted all of the things.I asked my D-I-L who told me that the sovereign rule for orchids is to have a free draining mix.. Although she does use orchid potting mix, she has also used chipped bark mixed with a little extra peat and perlite. I looked at the mix she left in my greenhouse. It looks very similar to basic bark chips mixed with coarse bulb compost. I do think that you can make use of what you have. Chop it a little bit finer and mix in a handful of moss from the lawn (I kid you not), a handful of perlite or horticultural grit and repot away. It seems that they also need a low fertility mix with the bark essentially acting as an anchor for the roots still in the soil (which determines the size of the bark chips). Obviously, those fat white arial roots are perfectly OK with a spritzing of distilled water (or at least, tapwater which has been left to stand for 24 hours so chlorine gases can sublime off). She did say to use those clear pots with drainage holes in the sides as light is essential for the roots and overwatering is the main cause of death. basically, you need to be able to pour water on the mix and watch it drain out almost as fast as you can water.
It's not actually for orchids
Thanks for asking and all the info though
Basically, run out of orchid mix and started eyeing up the big bags of bark chip sold for borders coz they're cheaper (I think, helpfully it's sold in kg while orchid mix is by litre so hard to compare..) and I'm tight The orchid mix I was using has clay granules in it too but I can manage without or replace those easily enough.
Had one in England great for rows of spuds . Here in Portugal its the gardening tool of choice , everyone has one rather than a spade.
The reason your crop was not so good was due to needing a pollination partner. Now you are putting in another bush, you will find you get much better fruit performance. True, they can take a few years to get to a decent stage of cropping so you may want to source a bush which is already 2-3 years old to boost pollination (and fruit set) with your existing plant.
The hand-tool of choice for 99% of the gardening/farming world...including me (Chillingworth hoe). If you can, get one with a 2pronged end (as well as the flat-bladed cutting/digging edge) - no finer tool for lifting brambles, mallows or other vicious rooted beasts.
I surely will...but it sounds like you are doing perfectly OK. Take pics of new growth (or wait until flowers are forming for a better chance of ID).
Our peacock butterflies beg to differ. have you considered making beer? Surprisingly delicious. Or even a refreshing tea with the young leaves.
