I have a tall rosemary that I moved to a more ideal location last fall. It took it quite a while to realize the move was a good thing, though, and lost most of its needles. I trimmed off most of the dead looking branches and waited for spring. It is now recovering, but instead of the nice tall leafy branches it once had, it has about 6 tall branches with leaves just at the tops. Is it possible to trim this guy back so he will bush out again? I know people cut it for use in foods, so I figure it was ok but I wasn't sure about a major pruning?
Thanks, Kim
rosemary question
If will have no leaves left when you prune it, I would leave it as is.
Perhaps try a cutting on a couple of the stalks to start new plants also.
This message was edited Apr 6, 2008 8:54 AM
Welll phooey....it looks ugly the way it is now. Perhaps cuttings are the way to go. I was just so happy it had managed to come back, but it looks nothing like it did before.
Rosemary cuttings root very easily in water. I bought some packaged at the grocery store to use in cooking and placed the cuttings in water to keep them fresh. They rooted.
I don't consider myself to be an expert, but you might also try bending one of the stems to the ground with the "leafy" part sticking out and the rest under dirt. I read in a book somewhere that rosemary cuttings root better when near the mother plant. In my garden I waited until the stem sprouted roots and then cut the stem from the mother plant.
-Tabitha
Yes ~ Tabitha is absolutely right. You might even do that in a pot so it would be easier to relocate. Mine has rooted in the soil around it where it has touched it.
Hmmm....that sounds like a good idea. I will go ahead and try that. Thanks!
Rosemary cuttings are almost fail proof. A 4 to 6 inch cutting with about half the length of the cutting stuck in a pot of soil will root in just a few weeks. Larger cuttings with branching also root very easily. The cuttings can be stuck straight in the yard in fun sun and they will root an grow like champs the second season. Rooting compound is not needed. I did about hundred cuttings in gallon pots last June and about 90 lived. The ones I stuck straight in the ground had some problem because my guienas decided they liked them also. Now is the time for rosemary propagation.