How to Prune Your Roses Right

[kevinkimers]

Apparently there is an art to pruning roses. LOL I am not much on roses, but my boyfriend is and we actually read this article that tells you the right way to prune your roses. Here is the link..... Be Careful When Pruning Roses. What are you thoughts on this.

 

[gata montes]

These are my thoughts and although I have to say that I'm not altogether sure that I would say there is an art to pruning roses - doing it correctly and at the right time of year is essential - not only for a healthy rose bush but also to provide an abundance of blooms and although when to prune is very much dependent on what climate you live in - as a general guide - roses are normally pruned in late winter, when they are in their dormant stage - which is generally somewhere between December and February.

There are however three different types of pruning for rose bushes

Heavy pruning - where you take the stems down to around 5" from the ground - which is used to rejuvenate old roses and very young ones to encourage vigorous growth.
Moderate pruning - is the one that is most commonly used by all rose growers and is where you cut the whole of the rose back to half its height.
Light pruning - is not recommended for any rose as it will result in a weak, spindly bush that hardly flowers and when and if it does the blooms will be poor quality.

Although as already mentioned- moderate pruning is the most commonly used method by all rose growers - its also advisable prior to reducing the overall size of the bush - to cut out any dead wood or twiggy growth as well as any cross over stems - as by doing that you will land up with a healthy looking, abundantly flowering rose bush that is sure to be an eye catching sight throughout the year.

 

[claudine]

It's a very interesting article, Kevinkimers.
I'm spontaneous when it comes to pruning roses. I do it whenever my miniatures grow too big. Also, I always cut off withered flowers and I shorten all branches in the beginning of winter, when they go dormant.

 

[kevinkimers]

As I stated before, my boyfriend is the roses lover. I can't stand they way they smell. However, I did promise him we could have some roses on the property when we start landscaping. He is going to get red, white, and blue roses and plant them to create a american flag. I am trying to figure out how we can do it using step garden boxes so that it is visible on the ground as well as the air. He is very patriotic. LOL Does anyone have any suggestions on successfully growing them? I have no clue about how often to water them. He live in a hot dry climate during the spring and summer and a very cold climate during the winter. I know that I want to set up the boxes so that they can be covered during the winter to protect their roots.