Snapped rosemary bush

olbas_oil

I was very sorry to see our rosemary bush (about 1.5 metres tall and 25 years old) has been snapped by the wind. There is a small amount of bark still attached, but the main trunk is broken about 30cm up from the soil.

Is there any chance of this regenerating?
It was supported, but the support has also snapped. Is there any possibility that the support may have aggravated the situation, in that the rosemary might have bent in the wind, and back again, but the stick could only snap?

Mojisola

There's a good chance it will shoot again from the remaining stem.

You could also take some cuttings from the top growth as a back-up.

Rotor

On such an old plant i think the chances of regeneration are slim. Remove it and get a replacement.

Farway

You can buy living ones in pots from most supermarkets, in the living herbs part of the greengrocery section, cheaper than a garden centre that's for sure.

I have bought the RFQS YS at at less than £1 from Asda

DaftyDuck

Stick loads of the bits from the top in soil and you should get cuttings galore. You'd usually try 6" bits but, since you have enforced cuttings, try some twice that size. If they root, you'll have a replacement bush in no time.

You can faff around with silly soil mixes and rooting hormone, but rosemary is one plant that just "does". Remove leaves from the lower two thirds of the stem, and shove them in.

The stem may regrow. Trim the break off neatly and hope. I doubt the stake caused any real harm.

elle_may

olbas_oil wrote: »

I was very sorry to see our rosemary bush (about 1.5 metres tall and 25 years old) has been snapped by the wind. There is a small amount of bark still attached, but the main trunk is broken about 30cm up from the soil.

Is there any chance of this regenerating?
It was supported, but the support has also snapped. Is there any possibility that the support may have aggravated the situation, in that the rosemary might have bent in the wind, and back again, but the stick could only snap?

Cut my rosemary down myself last year because it was getting to big. Also took some cuttings, put them in a pot and they have all rooted .Now i put the small one's on window sill to use. Kitchen smell's lovely now. The main one in garden has regrown again. They seem to be hardy no matter how i treat them .Mine over 20 year's. I have trimmed them over the year's.

TheCyclingProgrammer

Farway wrote: »

You can buy living ones in pots from most supermarkets, in the living herbs part of the greengrocery section, cheaper than a garden centre that's for sure.

I have bought the RFQS YS at at less than £1 from Asda

They may be cheaper but supermarket herb pots are grown quickly and normally fail to thrive in my experience. Get a decent plant from a proper nursery or sow from seed.

Davesnave

You probably won't get the same plant from seed, as varieties need to be grown from cuttings, but as Dafty says, you have those in abundance.

An old rosemary like that probably won't shoot from the remaining stem, and in our non-Mediterranean climate you have done well to keep one that long. I'd try to get some cuttings going as it's clearly a doer.