Jackie French reveals the best way to prune roses

Then some bright spark realised that the only reason cuttings were struck in winter was because that was when most gardeners pruned their roses and thus there was a ready supply of suitable cutting material. In areas with late frosts it's best to prune just before the leaves burst in order to set the plants back a couple of weeks so they are less likely to be hit by any late frosts. It's also good to prune back all roses growing vigorously all through the growing period – and all roses should be growing vigorously, well fed and watered, so they give more flowers.

This means that basically any time you feel like acquiring a new rose bush or six, you can do so. Come to think of it, the only roses we have that anyone paid for are the four I was given as birthday presents. All the others began their life wrapped in damp paper in a plastic bag in my handbag.

Note to all enthusiastic gardeners: acquire large handbags, suitable for snavelling seeds and cuttings, or at least a willing partner with an appropriate handbag collection who will smile agreeably when you say "just hold this darling". How is it that the smaller members of our species carry heavy handbags, while the blokes get by with a wallet and a mobile phone?

Sorry, back to roses. Cast your eyes on any gorgeous bloomers you pass, then ask the owners nicely if you can have some cuttings next time they're pruning. With luck they'll get out their secateurs at once. Most rose growers feel that increasing the number of roses on the planet is a good thing, though arriving with a plateful of home-made muffins, a dozen backyard eggs or basket of Tahitian limes may increase your chances, as will knowing what bit of the rose bush is more likely to grow into a new one.

Not any cutting can be easily encouraged to grow roots and blooms, at least not without a laboratory and various chemicals to help growth. You need to take ripe wood. You can tell if a branch is "ripe" if it has borne a flower, or better still, half a dozen, or if the thorns snap off the stem intact – it's easy to peel the green thorns off with your fingernail, which can be a useful trick if you want to remove thorns from roses near the path.

First prepare the cutting pot. In fact, keep a prepared cutting pot handy, just in case. A transparent one is good, like a plastic soft drink bottle, so you can see if roots grow, but only one cutting will fit in the average bottle. If you feel extravagant, a large transparent food storage container is excellent - the more cutting you have, the better the chance that one will take. Pierce a few holes in the base for drainage.

Traditionally, rose cuttings were planted in sand, but sand dries out fast. Half sand and half compost or even good loamy soil may be better. A transparent bag, like an oven bag, to slip over the pot, cuttings and all, to cut down moisture loss is also useful. It isn't really necessary … in fact none of it is REALLY necessary as I've grown a good many roses with the classic Just Shove Them In The Soil Method, and forgetting about them until a year later when the rose bushes poke their heads up above the grass. But that was with very vigorous varieties indeed, climbers like Mermaid or Albertine or Dorothy Perkins – usually the more vigorous the rose the more likely it is that the cuttings will all take. Dorothy Perkins is so keen to root that its branches may root wherever they touch the ground.

But to do it properly, take a cutting about 60 centimetres long. Work fast so the cutting doesn't dry out, or wrap it in wet something or other - handkerchief, tea towel, newspaper, unused nappy, whatever is handy.

Just before planting, cut off the spindly top, leaving at least four to six nodes – a node is where a leaf will grow – with a couple of leaves on top. You can hack off the cutting with secateurs but the base needs to be perfectly straight, so this is the time to cut the base again with a razor blade or a razor-sharp knife. Any ragged bits will die and rot and probably stop the cutting from taking.

Poke holes in the soil and sand mix with a chip stick or spoon – this means there is less chance of damaging the base of the cutting as you push it into the soil.

Dip the cutting in hormone rooting powder if you wish – I've never used it. Otherwise, just slide it gently into the hole. Pat the soil back, water well and slip the bag over the pot and seal.

Traditionally, if the leaves shrivel in place, the cutting isn't going to take. If they drop off, it will. You won't really know for several months, as a cutting may shoot and then wither a few weeks later. Growth on top is not a sure sign of root development – wait at least a year before planting out your precious little baby.

Water at least once a week, and slip the bag off once shoots begin to grow, especially if it's hot and summery or you may end up with a well cooked and dead rose bush. Do make sure that the soil mix stays moist.

All going well at least 50 per cent of your cuttings should take, a free way of making the world a more beautiful place with a lot more roses in it.

A final legalistic word: many modern roses, like many other modern varieties, are patented. You can't legally strike a cutting from a patented rose. Be polite and ask the owner: is this variety patented? Or is it part of our glorious rose heritage, generously passed down through centuries of cuttings from garden to garden.

* watching the deep red crab apple flower buds outside my study window slowly open over the past three days;

* greeting the little scrub wrens as they peck the spider's webs from around the windows to help increase the structural integrity of their nests;

* still not quite getting around to pruning the salvias … tomorrow … maybe;

* picking vast amounts of parsley to stop it from going to seed; and

* attacking the seed heads of the rhubarb so it doesn't put most of its energy into forming seeds and none into new stems for rhubarb tart.

* thinking seriously about seeds. We will have a vegetable garden this summer.

There is one sure way to make vegetables look delicious and as though they have been crafted by an expert chef. Stack them. For extra glamour, drizzle something on top. For protein, add cheese or a layer of meat or make the drizzle an avocado-based sauce.

Stacked veg work either on individual plates, shoved in front of the eaters so they each get a perfect plateful, or in one gigantic platter that everyone can share. They can be varied according to whatever is in the garden or what looks good in the farmers' market or even what hasn't wilted or turned to mush in the crisper drawer in the fridge.

The recipes below are just to get you started. Once you've tried them once or twice you'll be confident enough to know that, with just a little forethought, there are endless combinations that can be well and truly stacked.

This is a classic stack. It takes about an hour to prepare, but that can be done a day or two in advance. Keep each ingredient in its own container till you are ready to stack, drizzle and serve.

1 large eggplant, thinly sliced into rounds
3 red capsicum
6 zucchini, thinly sliced lengthways
8 fat red tomatoes
8 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp French mustard
handful of torn basil leaves

Remove the tomato skins by running a knife through the skin about four or five times around the tomato, then cover with boiling water. The skin will be ready to peel off in about a minute. Or be lazy and leave it on.

Place the capsicum on an oven tray, put the oven on high and leave them for about half an hour until they are beginning to blacken. Remove with tongs, shove in a plastic bag and then, when cool, wash away the seed and skin from the now collapsed capsicum and cut into quarters.

Sprinkle the eggplant with salt on one side, leave to drain for an hour, then repeat on the other side. Wash off the salt and wring out as much moisture as you can. Fry the slices on each side in four tablespoons of the olive oil until browned. Remove and drain.

Fry the zucchini on each side until they are just browning too.

Now fry thick slices of the tomato until they are just ready to give up their juice, with the chopped garlic added just as the second side looks almost ready. Don't let the garlic brown.

Layer slices of eggplant, capsicum, zucchini and tomato in a stack on an ovenproof dish. Place in a hot oven to reheat.

Add the rest of the oil and the mustard and vinegar to the juices in the pan. Heat just before you are ready to serve the veg, and drizzle the sauce over the stack.

Scatter on the basil. Serve.

1 large eggplant, sliced into eight rounds and salted and drained as above
2 eggs
½ cup plain flour
7 thick slices of mozzarella cheese
2 tbsp freshly grated parmesan cheese
8 tbsp olive oil
1 bunch basil leaves, roughly torn
6 cloves garlic, crushed
2 cups crushed tomatoes, either your home-grown pureed ones or canned

Dip each slice of eggplant into egg then flour and fry until brown. Repeat until all are done.

Layer eggplant, basil, mozzarella, eggplant, basil, mozzarella, eggplant. Top with parmesan. Bake until the cheese oozes.

Meanwhile saute the garlic in what is left of the oil until it is soft. Don't let it brown or it will turn bitter. Add the tomato, simmer for about 5-10 minutes to thicken.

Pour the tomato and garlic sauce over the eggplant layers just before serving.

Serves 4

4 potatoes, peeled, boiled then mashed with 8 tbsp butter and a touch of cream
1 sweet potato, treated as above
2 bunches spinach, washed and steam in the liquid left on the leaves, then roughly chopped.
2 tbsp breadcrumbs – roughly crumbed elderly sourdough bread is perfect
2 tbsp parmesan cheese.

Layer potato, then spinach and then sweet potato, then top with the breadcrumbs mixed with the cheese. Bake until the top is brown and serve.