Potting, repotting, and changing pots for potted Chinese roses
Today, the editor will elaborate on the knowledge introduction of potted Chinese roses, including potting, repotting, and changing pots. Next, the editor will introduce these to the netizens.
1. Potting
Potted Chinese roses can be potted in any season as long as the seedlings' root systems are developed appropriately or they are transplanted with soil blocks. Spring, summer, and autumn are all suitable. For field-grown Chinese roses, it is best to pot large plants after the leaves fall in winter or before the sprouts appear in early spring, during the dormant period. Otherwise, it will affect their normal growth and development, weaken the plant's vitality, and require a long time to recover. For young Chinese rose seedlings, there are no strict time restrictions, and they can be potted as soon as they have survived, to prevent them from becoming weak due to overgrowth.
For seedlings with coarse sand or hydroponics, as well as bare-root field seedlings, it is suitable to plant them in plain sandy soil for a period before using fertilized soil to repot them when the root systems are robust. For seedlings propagated in soil or field plants with root balls, they can be potted using ordinary potting soil. If new pots are used, they should be soaked in water first; if old pots are used, they should be cleaned with water first. Cover the pot holes with tiles and place a 1-3 cm thick layer of coarse sand at the bottom as a drainage layer. Then, fill part of the pot with soil first. When transplanting, use your hand and a trowel to gently lift the seedlings from the seedbed, starting from one end, carefully to avoid damaging the young roots or breaking the new rootlets. Do this while lifting the seedlings and potting them.
If it is a small seedling potted in a pot, the soil block can be removed from the pot, and then the seedlings with the soil block can be carefully separated and potted. For bare-root potting, a soil mound can be made in the pot first. Hold the seedling with your left hand, place the plant upright, and use your right hand to fill the soil while gently lifting the plant to make the rootlets hang down at a 45-degree angle. After planting, firmly press the soil and leave a 2 cm gap between the potting soil and the pot edge to facilitate watering. For potting with a soil block, the exposed rootlets should also be straightened and the plant planted upright.
For large field-grown Chinese roses, the long roots should be pruned when potting.
When potting Chinese roses, it is important to choose an appropriate pot size based on the size of the seedlings. It is best to avoid using a large pot for small seedlings or a small pot for large seedlings. The soil used for potting should be moist, meaning it clumps together when grabbed but easily crumbles when squeezed. After potting, do not water immediately. In dry conditions, you can spray water to keep the seedlings alive. This not only promotes the healing of the root wound and prevents rot and withering but also helps the plant quickly establish roots and grow robustly.
Newly potted Chinese rose seedlings should be placed in locations that suit the climatic changes of different seasons, cultivation conditions, and growth stage needs, adapting to local conditions. In early spring, when it is dry and windy with large temperature fluctuations, the pots should be placed on a windowsill or under the eaves to avoid the wind and face the sun. For large-scale potted Chinese rose production in commercial enterprises, windproof and warming facilities should be installed. In general, based on the ecological habits of Chinese roses, suitable growth conditions should be chosen and set. The placement area should be flat, open, and easy to maintain.
2. Repotting
According to the growth posture and development needs of the plant, the seedling is removed from the small pot with the soil block intact and planted in a larger pot. Generally, young seedlings initially use a 3-inch clay pot. When repotting for the first time, they are moved to a 6-inch No. 2 cylinder pot. Repotting also includes transitioning from plain soil to nutrient-rich soil. There are no strict time restrictions for repotting. For example, if a plant is moved to a No. 2 cylinder pot in spring and grows vigorously, it can be moved to an 8-inch pot by July or August. Larger plants can be moved to even larger pots. The significance of repotting is to allow the roots of the Chinese rose plant to spread from the inside to the outside, fully filling the potting soil and preventing them from becoming dense near the pot walls and bottom, leaving empty spaces. When repotting, use the index finger and middle finger of the right hand to hold the base of the plant, with the palm close to the soil surface, and the left hand to lift the bottom of the pot to turn it over. For smaller pots, tap the edge of the pot with the left hand, and for larger pots, knock the edge of the pot on a hard surface to remove the pot intact. The original pot soil should not be too dry or too wet when repotting. Use fertilized potting soil for repotting. First, support the pot holes with tiles and pad the drainage layer, then cover with a layer of potting soil. Add 30-50g of hoof slices as a base fertilizer, evenly scattered. If hoof slices are not available, organic fertilizers such as decomposed bones, hides, and碎料 can be used as a base fertilizer. Cover with another layer of soil, then gently remove the surface soil of the root ball and the lower drainage layer. Loosen and straighten the fibrous roots around the root ball without dispersing it, then place it in the pot, fill with soil, and tamp down. Usually, there is no need for shading after repotting. The other operation points are the same as for potting.
3. Changing Pots
For potted Chinese roses that have been growing for more than two years and have developed into a mature shape, to maintain vigorous growth and an even shape, it is necessary to remove the roots and change the potting soil and add a base fertilizer every year after the leaves fall and before the sprouts appear. Generally, the same size pot is used for repotting without increasing the pot size. For those that need to be stored in a cold cellar in winter, remove the entire pot, remove the roots, first remove the surface soil of the root ball and the bottom drainage layer, then trim the dense fibrous roots around the root ball. Also, check for decayed roots and root tumors. Retain the protective soil around the root ball without dispersing it. The general requirement is to remove no more than half of the old soil and then store it in the cellar for the winter. In the following spring, use new potting soil for potting. For those placed in a cold room or plastic tent in winter, after removing the pot and roots, they can be planted directly in the original pot with new potting soil. The operation points for changing pots are the same as for repotting. After changing pots, water thoroughly once and then loosen the soil appropriately before placing it in a cold room or sunny area. The base fertilizer for changing pots is still best with hoof slices. If hoof slices are not available, well-rotted manure or cake fertilizer mixed with potting soil can also be used. Never mix raw fertilizer into the potting soil to prevent root rot.
During the growing period of potted Chinese roses, the pots should be rotated. Often, the plant's growth tends to be one-sided because Chinese roses are sun-loving flowers. If the pots are not regularly rotated, the side facing the sun will grow too vigorously, while the shaded side will be weak, affecting the shape and the uniformity of flowering. Additionally, the placement of pots should also be considered. When young seedlings are first potted, to save space and facilitate management, the small pots are placed in a staggered manner, minimizing the space between them. As the plants grow faster, it is necessary to adjust the placement of the pots. After repotting, when the plants are larger, the pots should be spaced out and arranged in rows. The spacing should be such that the edges of the adjacent pots just touch but do not overlap. When adjusting the placement, grade the plants by size and remove any sick, disabled, dead, or weak plants for easier management.
The above sharing of the comprehensive methods for potting, repotting, and changing pots for potted Chinese roses aims to solve your problems with green plants.