Jul 4, 2021
Everything You Should Know About Deadheading Roses
Deadheading roses is a process that encourages both new and larger blooms by removing dead or faded flowers from your rose garden. This process, which can be done a few times a week, will completely transform your rose plants into their best and most beautiful version of themselves.
While the name deadheading might sound intimidating, it is a process that is easy to learn and master. We have broken down everything you should know about deadheading roses. Read on, and you will be a deadheading expert in no time!
Rose Bloom Cycles
Roses bloom in cycles, which is the time from when a fully-developed flower bloom is freshly cut to when a new bloom takes its place. One bloom cycle is typically between six to eight weeks, although there are some exceptions to this rule.
While gardening novices might not be familiar with the growing habits of a rose plant, those with an experienced green thumb will know that rose plants are quick to grow into an unruly, tangled mess. The more tender love and care you give your roses, the better your plants’ overall health and flower production will be. Regular and concentrated pruning will keep your plant in tip-top condition, both inside and out. Staying on top of your rose management will make their care easier for you in the long run.
What Does Deadheading Roses Mean?
To deadhead a rose means to remove a fading or a finished flower head from the plant. It not only freshens and neatens up the appearance of the rose plant but also encourages the plant to continue its blooming process. Rose plants come in many shapes and varieties, but like other plants, their blooming flowers signal a precursor for growing fruit. As the ultimate purpose of enjoying a rose plant is for the flowers themselves, deadheading essentially tricks the plant into thinking it is still in its flower blooming stage.
When a flower finishes its life cycle and drops off, the plant would then begin to grow fruit in its place. The plant will channel all of its inner nutrients into fruit growth, forgoing any additional flower production. By cutting off a finished flower using the deadheading process, we are encouraging further floral growth from the plant. If faded flowers are left attached to the plant, it can slow down the growth of fresh new blooms.
Removing them from the plant speeds up the beautification process and encourages further healthy growth. Not only that, but the deadheading process also removes unnecessary branches that are ideal camping grounds for bugs and other pests of all sorts and kinds. It also improves the air circulation within the plant as it clears space around the remaining branches.
How To Deadhead Roses
There are some gardening tools and supplies you will need before you can deadhead your roses. These items are protective gardening gloves, some good secateurs, or specialized deadheading snips, and a bucket. Secateurs are pruning shears, which are special scissors to use on plants that are strong enough to cut through hard branches.
There are two stages in which you can deadhead roses. As an individual bloom fades, you can snap it off by hand underneath the flowerhead. By removing these blooms individually, you will not only be keeping up the appearance of the overall plant but giving future flowers more room to bloom their brightest.
When all of the flower blooms in a particular cluster have faded, then the entire truss can be removed. To do this, you will trace the stem back to its first leaf joint and snip the stem with the secateurs right above this marking point. This practice will improve the overall presentation of the rose plant.
Examining The Differences In Rose Varieties And Deadheading Methodology
Remember, not all roses need to be deadheaded. Spent roses, or ones that have completed their lifecycle, are the flowers that should be deadheaded. Other viable candidates for deadheading are roses that are competing or entwined with each other to give more space for growth and flourishing. You should also cut roses that are growing inwards, as the visual intention is for the roses to display outwards.
While the general practice of deadheading roses is similar across the board, there are subtle differences to be aware of depending on the specific variety of rose plant:
Deadheading Rose Shrubs
Rose shrubs are some of the easiest rose varieties to care for and maintain. Rose shrubs tend to shed their flowers on a regular basis and grow new blooms in their place. This makes deadheading easy for you, as the plant takes care of the process itself on its own. However, that does not mean that there is not anything you can do to help the plant flourish. Cleaning up the fallen roses and deadheading any stubborn fading blooms will assist the plant in its growth process. You will also want to prune the shrub branches to keep the branches healthy. While deadheading a rose shrub might not be as labor-intensive as other rose varieties, the combination of this with the specific deadheading assistance will make your rose shrub the talk of the town.
Deadheading Floribunda And Spray Roses
Floribunda and spray roses differ from rose shrubs because of the way they bloom. These derivatives of the rose plant produce their flower blooms in abundant clusters, which produces an awe-inspiring visual effect for any admirer. The entire cluster acts as a singular flower, so they all bloom and fade simultaneously. If you want to deadhead a rose cluster, you simply will cut the stem that carries all of the flowers and then can dispose of it. In its place, a new branch will grow, with a new blooming cluster in its place.
Deadheading Hybrid Tea Roses
When it comes to hybrid tea roses, you will locate the first set of five leaves and cut right underneath them. There are different schools of thought on whether or not to cut beneath the second set of five leaves, but that is ultimately up to the individual gardener.
Rose Deadheading Tips
There are many different schools of thought regarding deadheading roses, and they are all equally vocal in online gardening communities. However, there are a few deadheading tips that everyone seems to agree with across the board:
- The best time to deadhead roses is usually during the peak of flower season, which is late summer into early fall. In the wintertime, dense foliage helps the plant to stay alive while in its dormant phase and come back in full force the next spring.
- When you aim for the second five-leaf set on the stem and cut below it, the result will be fewer but fuller and larger blooms.
- Cut the stem at a 45-degree angle just above a leaf that is pointing outward.
- In order to ensure healthy blooms, make sure that the leaves on the plant are dense. Leaves absorb sunlight and convert it into plant food, so the more leaves, the more growth!
- When you snap just the flower bloom, it will result in not only new flowers with shorter stems but smaller flowers in general.
- Cutting away buds that are at the top of the plant shoot will encourage the plant to grow additional shoots that are further down the cane, resulting in larger blooms.
- Focus on the five-leaf sets of roses. Deadheading a three-leaf set will result in a shoot that either will not grow or produce a flower.
- The point where the leaf set joins the stem is referred to as the bud eye. It is usually identifiable by its dark marking. This area is where the new shoot will grow. Always cut above the bud eye and never below it.
In Conclusion
Deadheading is a pruning and shaping process that will promote both the beauty and longevity of your rose garden. This gardening technique should be applied just as the petals are either about to fall or shortly thereafter.
By following these techniques, you will be able to ensure repeat rose bloom cycles to admire and enjoy for seasons to come. This process can feel overwhelming at first, especially when looking at a tangled mass of thorny roses. That being said, keep at it, and you will be sure to find your gardening groove. After some practice, deadheading your rose blooms will feel as easy as, well, stopping and smelling the roses.
Sources:
How To Deadhead Roses - For More Flowers In A Matter Of Weeks | Home And Gardens
