Why are my roses leggy with few flowers?
Written by
Benjamin Miller
Reviewed by
Prof. Martin Thorne, Ph.D.Plants with few flowers and elongated stems are clues to other issues that may be involved. I have saved many buds like this. Not enough pruning is usually to blame. If plants are not thinned regularly, they grow tall and leggy. They expend energy to maintain excessive foliage instead of blooming. You can make corrections by using a few strategies. Your roses can change with this care.
Pruning correction begins with the removal of branches that are growing inward, which should be cut back to the base. The next thing to remove is the spindly growth, which is characterized by branches thinner than a pencil. Keep only the strong, outward-growing canes, and I select five to seven canes for every plant. Cut the canes back to 18-24 inches above the outward-facing buds. This will promote compact bushy growth.
Structural Pruning
- Remove 33% of oldest/thickest canes
- Cut remaining canes to uniform height
- Create open vase shape
Nutrient Adjustment
- Apply bone meal (0-9-0) at base
- Foliar feed with seaweed extract
- Avoid high-nitrogen fertilizers
Light optimization deals with a lot of legginess. That is, roses require 6 hours of direct sunlight every day. Trim any limbs that shade your plants. If you're transplanting, move them in early spring. I was even able to significantly improve the performance of one of my roses simply by relocating it. Exposure to the morning sun is best for flowers.
Phosphorus-laden feeding, which directs energy to flowers, is one way to achieve this. When at 35-50% bloom and after post-corrective pruning of old wood, add bone meal fertilizer or a rock phosphate mix. As an alternative suggestion, you can also use a bone-meal fertilizer, as phosphorus is the slowest-released. I sometimes side-dress my roses monthly during the growing season. Do not use a nitrogen-heavy fertilizer, as this increases leaf area, not flowers. Making this switch significantly increased flowering on my otherwise sparse-blooming roses.
Continuous maintenance will deter recurrence. As I have recommended, prune most plants once a year during dormancy. Remove any weak growth whenever you see it. Pinch back the tips of the vigorous canes in the summer months. I monitor my plants at least once a week during the growing months. With consistent checking, you will be able to manage any plant that tends to become leggy before it does. Your roses will remain compact and floriferous if they receive the necessary attention to thrive.
Patience pays off when gardeners rehabilitate leggy roses. New growth will be visible within weeks of correcting the plants. Flowering should return to full glory the following season. I keep track of my recovery with photos, generally taking one every month. This record-keeping demonstrates the remarkable transformations that can occur. In time, you will have bushy plants covered in flowers.
Read the full article: 7 Essential Steps for Pruning Rose Bushes
