Hybrid tea roses obtained as a result of breeding work in the mid-19th century from old tea and remontant varieties of roses. Since then they have been the most beloved and most popular among gardeners. The roses took the best qualities from their parent varieties: resistance to temperature changes and large flowers of various colors.
In many varieties, one shoot produces 1 flower, which makes hybrid tea roses convenient for cutting. Modern varieties can form groups of flowers, which increases the decorative value of the bush. Hybrid tea varieties have dark green leathery leaves, and the height of the bush can reach 1 m. Flowering lasts from mid-June to early October with a short break of 2 weeks.
How to prune hybrid tea roses for the winter
Before you start pruning hybrid tea roses for the winter, you should take care of high-quality gardening tools. You will need a well-sharpened pruner that will make an even cut without crushing the stem. Before use, the pruning shears must be disinfected with potassium permanganate or Bordeaux mixture.
You should pay attention to the following rules when pruning roses.
The slope of the cut is necessary from the bud so that the water rolls off and does not accumulate on the cut and does not flow down to the bud, which can rot from excess water.
The shoots that grow from the outer bud will grow outward, which will give them the opportunity to fully develop. In this way, a cup-shaped or rounded shape of the bush will be established, when the shoots grow in an outer circle without interfering with each other.
Autumn pruning of roses carried out in order to facilitate their concealment. Hybrid tea varieties tolerate winter well, but you should remove damaged shoots, leaves, unripe green shoots, as well as burgundy shoots that the plant released too late and they will not have time to ripen. Such shoots are called fattening shoots. And they are, more often than not, doomed to death.
Another goal pursued when pruning is to ensure the growth of new shoots in the next growing season. With the growth of new shoots, new roots appear, the function of which is to nourish the emerging shoots. A feature of hybrid tea roses is their increased regenerative ability, which allows the bush to renew itself annually, prolonging its life. The life of rose bushes in one place can last for decades.
The question of removing leaves remains open and does not have a clear answer. Moreover, many experienced rose growers with extensive experience do not recommend removing foliage at all. Since this is, first of all, hard work if there are more than a dozen rose bushes. After all, you need to trim the leaves, and not tear them off, so as not to damage the bud.
It is believed that by removing leaves, gardeners weaken the plant. In the spring, hybrid tea varieties cannot recover for a long time, even if the wintering was successful. This happens because heavily pruned roses with foliage removed cannot fully store the necessary microelements for a successful winter.
Pruning of hybrid tea roses takes place in the last ten days of October - early November.Pruning can be gentle or moderate, when the shoots are removed by about half. This method of pruning will make it possible to make another pruning in springif the shoots are damaged by frost or disease.
Hybrid tea roses bloom on both old shoots and new ones. First, I bloom the old woody shoots, and only then the young ones, which allows the roses to bloom continuously for a long time.
When planting seedlings, remove damaged roots, shorten long shoots by 2-3 buds, this will enable the plant to grow rich green mass.
In the 2nd year, hybrid tea roses are shortened to 6 buds, which is approximately 20-30 cm from the soil level. The most powerful shoots are subjected to this pruning; weak shoots are shortened more, leaving 2-3 buds or 15 cm, retreating from the soil surface.
How to prune hybrid tea roses, watch the video:
There is an opinion among flower growers, which is based on many years of experience, that hybrid tea varieties do not need pruning in the fall. You should not injure the plant twice: in spring and autumn. During the winter, all the nutrients from the leaves and green shoots gradually pass into the roots and stems, supporting them during the cold period. By pruning the greenery, we deprive the rose bush of additional nutrition.
However, the question of hiding roses no doubt. Regardless of the region, hybrid tea roses require shelter. From the simplest shelter with spruce branches in the southern regions of the country to the construction of more serious structures for shelter in the middle zone, in Siberia and the Urals.
Preparing roses for winter
Preparation of hybrid tea roses for winter cold begins at the end of summer. Nitrogen is excluded from fertilizing and fertilized with potassium-phosphorus fertilizers. If you have loamy soils, then you can feed with potassium sulfate, since loams are able to accumulate phosphorus, and excess phosphorus will not benefit the plants.
Then the roses are pruned. Root circle spud up soil or covered with a layer of mulch of 0.3-0.4 m. The mulch can be a mixture of soil, peat and sawdust, or your own garden soil with the addition of humus.
During the period when temperatures reach at least -7°C, hybrid tea varieties are covered. For shelter, use spruce branches or dry leaves. These are the simplest and most accessible materials. You can also use various garden debris, for example, faded plants torn from a flowerbed along with their roots. They insulate hybrid tea roses well and create ventilation. Plants in such shelters feel good in winter, do not freeze or damp out. Before covering, hybrid tea roses are treated with copper-containing preparations.
You can wrap roses in agrofibre, burlap or thick paper. First, use twine to pull the branches towards each other, and only then insulate them from above.
Another shelter option using arcs. If the roses are not pruned in the fall, they should be bent down a little. The distance between the stems and the top of the shelter should be at least 10-20 cm so that there is an air gap, thanks to which the plants will be protected from frost. The height of the arches is from 50-60 cm. It is not advisable to make them higher, since the bushes in such a shelter can freeze.
The arcs are covered on top with geotextile or any other non-woven covering material in 2-3 layers. They are securely fixed to the arches and to the soil so that the wind does not tear them off. You can also use film, but then the shelter is left open at the ends so that the plants do not dry out, as condensation forms on the film. With the onset of temperatures -7°C-10°C, all ventilation openings should be securely closed.
Another shelter method is suitable for northern regions. A hut is made from boards, plywood or cellular polycarbonate, which is installed above the hybrid tea roses. Boards or plywood panels are additionally covered with lutrasil in several layers, the top layer is turned with the smooth side, it does not allow moisture to pass through. At positive temperatures and a slight minus, the ends of the hut are not closed. But as soon as -5°C-7°C sets in, the entire structure is covered.
Conclusion
Hybrid tea roses are a decoration for any garden that requires proper care. Only then will the plants delight you with abundant and long flowering. The choice is made by the gardener himself, whether to prune the bushes for the winter or leave them as they are until spring pruning, or how to cover the plant for the winter. If the choice is made in favor of pruning, then certain agrotechnical rules should be followed so that the roses remain healthy and do not waste energy on restoration in the next season.
