Rose growing is a life of learning from our mentors. More often than not, the simple things are the best.
One of these simple things came to me while watching a friend pull weeds from his potted roses. He used a 12" stainless steel tweezers. I was amazed how easy and effective it was at plucking weeds near thorny canes that normally stick into your fingers.
In addition to pulling weeds, I've learned that it is a great garden tool for daily rose tasks, and the tweezer is perfect for working with cactus and other plants.
With my tweezers, I pick up cane prunings that fall beyond my reach, scratch and mix granular fertilizers around plants, remove damaged leaves from canes, and even pluck those nasty Japanese beetles out of blooms.
I keep one in each of my greenhouses, one at work to remove paper from jammed printers, and one in the workshop to pick up dropped items.
Try one of the simple, unsung heros of rose growing,
the Garden Tweezer.
— Steve Singer, Wisconsin Roses