By Davew89
West Midlands, United Kingdom
Can somebody tell me how to identify a sucker on a rambling rose.I bought a Kew rambler from David Austin about three years ago, it has grown rapidly but most branches do not flower so I presume they are suckers but they all look the same.
- 5 Sep, 2011
They may not be suckers - ramblers have one main flush of flowers on stems grown the previous year, so if you've new stems this year, they'll flower next. Trace the ones you're suspicious about back to their point of origin - if the come from above the graft point (the knobbly bit between the base of the stems and the roots) they're not suckers - if the arise from below the graft, they're suckers. Usually, suckers grow very rapidly, are light green and tend to grow straight, often with more leaflets than the original rose.
5 Sep, 2011