Help! Rambling rose, wisteria, and butterfly bush mess! - Orchid Board

Jadeco · #1 07-08-2010, 05:54 PM

Hello, I just moved into a new residence and started tending to the backyard garden this summer. There is a rambling rose that hasn't been pruned for about 8 years (I know because my parents lived here during that time.) I started by pruning back the dead &/or diseased branches and cutting back the canes on the rambling rose bush.

The wisteria is also tangled up in the rose plant on one side, and I have never seen it bloom. I'm not particularly interested in forcing it to bloom, but want to know if I should move the wisteria plant.

Also, there is a very tall butterfly bush in the midst of this mess. It's so tall that the blooms are laying on the neighbor's roof! Should I move that, too?

Thanks.

Royal · #2 07-08-2010, 06:57 PM

I love wisteria blooms, but I'm not a fan of the plant. It can be invasive. I know what I'd do with it.

I would have done the same thing to the rose. It will probably be happy to be pruned. I'd hack it way back next winter-spring just to keep it rambling in a desirable direction.

Butterfly bush is the common name for a few different plants, but I don't think either would suffer from a serious haircut. We grow Buddlia and it freezes back each winter. I just shape it a bit and let it go nuts. If it gets unruly I just break out the loppers. It will probably put another flush of blooms out if you don't mow it to the ground.

In general, I'd just neaten it all up and enjoy them for the season. Once winter rolls around it should be less work.

Eyebabe · #3 07-08-2010, 08:11 PM

You can cut all those back esp. the butter fly bush and they will do fine...question is when?
Not sure if fall or spring is best; but one thing is for sure, a severe hacking back of any plant in mid summer can kill it

Jadeco · #4 07-09-2010, 05:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eyebabe

You can cut all those back esp. the butter fly bush and they will do fine...question is when?
Not sure if fall or spring is best; but one thing is for sure, a severe hacking back of any plant in mid summer can kill it

All the websites that had rambling rose pruning advice said to prune it during the summer after the blooms expire. And they are most certainly expired.

Eyebabe · #5 07-09-2010, 08:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jadeco

All the websites that had rambling rose pruning advice said to prune it during the summer after the blooms expire. And they are most certainly expired.

Prune yes, by all means...I was talking about seriously cutting back to get a jungle under control