A Rose of my Own










 


2004 STATISTICS (updated 7/18/04)

  • First cross - May 17th, 2004
  • Last cross - July 5th, 2004
  • Number of crosses made - 287
  • Current running hip set success rate (hips confirmed as developing seeds) - 58%
  • 2003 Final hip set success rate (pollinations that made it to final harvest) - 34%
  • First expected harvest - August 25th, 2004

Back to Top

2004 HIP DEVELOPMENT

Blue Nile hip (LEV04114) @ 5 weeks

 To date, the running hip set success rate has been tracking fairly high (58%) in comparison to the final harvested success rate from 2003 (34%). In addition to this apparent increase in pollination success rate, hips appear to be developing significantly higher seed counts than the average seeds per hip count from 2003. I have had many hips develop at such an alarming pace that a good number of them have actually split along the side; some as early as 4 weeks. During hip development in 2003 I did have a few that split. However, that was not until they were much further along and approaching the target harvest date (my target harvest dates are set at 100 days from pollination and then "best judgment" based on hip color determines when they are actually harvested). Other hips, not pictured here, that have split this year include ones on Ingrid Bergman, Lady Sylvia and Intrigue.
Blue Nile hip (LEV04145) @ 5 weeks
Small Miracle hip (LEV04008) @ 8 weeks
McCartney hip (LEV04126) @ 5 weeks
 
This year is also proving to have quite an assortment of unusual looking hips. Louise Estes and Bronze Star rising to the top of that list, developing hips composed almost entirely of exogenous seeds (seeds developing on the outside of the hip), with little to no swelling of the penduncle area. Other hips, such as the Miss Elvis hip shown below, have quickly developed high numbers of exogenous seeds, spilling over the edges, while swelling in the penduncle area at a much slower pace. Hips such as these are not necessarily uncommon, but of interesting note to a novice such as myself, accustomed to viewing photographs of the more widely published "traditional" golf ball or egg shaped hips.
Louise Estes hip (LEV04165) @ 5 weeks
Miss Elvis hip (LEV04250) @ 4 weeks
Bronze Star hip (LEV04239) @ 4 weeks
 Louise Estes hip (LEV04123) @ 5 weeks

Back to Top

BUDDING SEEDLINGS

The 2004 growing season has brought about the onset of another "first" in my growing list of rose adventures. This year I made my first attempts at budding.
 
I obtained multiflora rootstock from WI Roses in the spring. They come as young bareroot plants with a small established root system ready for potting. Because of the small root system, they are somewhat easier to get up and going than the "traditional" sticks obtained from other rootstock suppliers. However, you are limited to multiflora by going this route and as such you may wish to consider other options and rootstock depending on your climate and growing conditions.
 
Upon arrival in April, I soaked the rootstock in water for several days and then potted them up in one gallon containers with the same potting mix I use for my germinating seedlings (Premier Pro-Mix for Seedlings). It did not take long for them to take root and begin putting on a good deal of lush top growth By the time the end of May rolled around, they were ready to go in the ground at the back of my seedling test bed.
 
In mid July, I took my first crack at T budding. I selected budwood from some of my most promising seedlings and off I went. I did not have any difficulty slicing and dicing either the budwood or the rootstock as both had been well watered the day before and in the morning the day I began the process. That was the easy part. However, slipping in the bud shields and then securing them in place proved to be a bit more awkward than I had anticipated. This was probably even more so due to the fact that the rootstock was in the ground and tightly spaced to conserve growing room within the test bed.
     
While there are many products specifically made for securing budwood to rootstock, I opted to use simple florist tape as this was something I already had in my possession and a product I was very familiar with using. To date I think this was a fairly good choice for me as it did seem to reduce some of the potential additional difficulties I may have encountered trying to use a product with which I was not as comfortable. I went through several rounds of budding on my rootstock and with each consecutive series of attempts feel I was already beginning to get a better feel for how to maneuver the bud shields into place and how to better secure them with the tape. This is clearly something that is going to be a matter of obtaining improved results through greater familiarity with the process. As they say, practice makes perfect...or in the case of budding...closer to perfect.

 

Back to Top

| Welcome | 2003/04 Seedlings | 2004/05 Seedlings | 2004 Activities | The Journey | Articles | Links |

****

A Rose of My Own * Souderton, PA 18964

Original photographs and site content © Michelle L. LeVan-Steklenski 2004, 2005. All rights reserved.

Page updated on July 8, 2005