Rose Magic - From Stalk to Shrub

Wheelbarrowfuls of imagination are needed in winter when contemplating a severely pruned rose. How can three stalks possibly grow into the beautiful, romantic queen of shrubs? There is definitely some natural rose magic afoot!

At pruning time I despair of my more mature roses ever being properly in flower again. They seem to be totally made of ancient wood, and I never know what bits to cut. Climbing Iceberg - I'm talking about you! One winter I'll remove all your canes, just to see if you take the hint and build new ones!

But it's not really the pruning that puzzles me. I understand how tough roses are - I know they'd probably survive worse things than the Moosey hedge clippers or bluntish secateurs. It's that enormous contrast between the rose in winter and summer.

In spring there's so much new greenery in the garden borders that new rose growth gets taken for granted. It's fair to say that I first fully take notice when I spy rose buds (and aphids). The shrub's minimalist beginnings are a distant wintry memory.

Nature's Great Wonder

The metamorphism from stick trio to billowing bush foaming with green leaves and flower colour, as winter moves through into summer, is one of nature's great wonders. It's up there with squishy, ugly caterpillars turning into shimmering butterflies.

How can anything so beautiful possibly start life as two or three little stubs growing out of a knobbly bottom bit? Such is the magic of a well-pruned rose...