A Guide to Pruning Roses

Planting & Caring for Your Rose Garden

Roses are a great addition to anyone’s life, home or yard. They add color and beauty and they smell great, but over the years, roses have acquired a reputation as being one of the most fragile and time-consuming flowers you can attempt to grow on your own.

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Pruning roses might appear to be a daunting task if it is your first time, but with the right advice and a little practice you will soon get the hang if it. Pruning your rose bushes removes dead plant matter, trains your rose plant into the shape you desire and also improves the overall health of your rose plant.

Pruning is the act of removing dead and damaged pieces of the rose plant which will encourage new growth. You are also able to train your rose stems to face a specific direction by proper pruning. This is important because you can train the new growth to grow facing the outside of the plant and this will provide enough air circulation on the inside to reduce the chance of the rose plant developing fungal diseases such as mildew.

Begin by soaking your pruning shears in equal parts water and bleach. This helps to prevent disease as well as insects. It is also best to prune in the spring after the last frost and when the leaf buds begin to swell.

When pruning roses, small hand shears are best for pruning small branches. For the thicker and larger branches you will need a pair of loppers. These are best for branches that are thicker than a pencil. First you should cut away any dead branches and thin twig like growth. Then cut all of the branches that are overlapping each other because these often become diseased where they are in contact.

When pruning roses, make your cuts about a quarter of an inch above a new swelling bud that is facing towards the outside of the rose plant, and at an angle of forty five degrees to the stem. If the core or center of the stem is a brown color, make a new cut further down the stem. The center of the stem should be a cream color.

Later on in the season when your roses plants are blooming you should also cut way the older, dying blooms. This process is known as deadheading which encourages your rose plant to re-bloom.