Knockout roses are growing from bottom only. - Ask Extension
My knockout roses are 4yrs old this year. I have 5 in the same location. I had my beds trimmed back, mulched and weeded. For some reason the roses ...
Knowledgebase
Knockout roses are growing from bottom only. #399248
Asked May 11, 2017, 8:13 AM EDT
My knockout roses are 4yrs old this year. I have 5 in the same location. I had my beds trimmed back, mulched and weeded. For some reason the roses are only growing from the very bottom. Now I have what looks like brown/dead stems on top of the bush and very little green foliage on the bottoms of each bush. I'm afraid to trim them all the way down to the new foliage. Any suggestions would be
appreciated. Thank you, Melissa
appreciated. Thank you, Melissa
Jasper County Indiana
Expert Response
The entire top part of the rose bush appears to be dead. The green growth at the bottom appears to be coming up from the root stock, and if it is allowed to grow, will not look at all like the rose bush you originally bought.
I can't tell for certain what caused the rose bush to die back. It's in a very tight place, root-wise, and may have had some root death due to heat, too much moisture, or too little.
This plant should be removed. I would not recommend putting another rose in this spot, at least not without widening the bed somehow.
I can't tell for certain what caused the rose bush to die back. It's in a very tight place, root-wise, and may have had some root death due to heat, too much moisture, or too little.
This plant should be removed. I would not recommend putting another rose in this spot, at least not without widening the bed somehow.
