When is the best time to prune roses? It's really not that difficult, but you need to know the type of rose you have since they are treated differently.
Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Instructions
Step 1
Identify the type of Rose you have in the garden. The best time to do pruning is late winter or early spring. The exception is early blooming roses. Look at bush and remove any branches that are damaged by winter winds and storms. Look for old branches and ones that are growing towards each other and could eventually cross. These will need some pruning.
Step 2
When pruning, take out any stems that are too close or ones that have grown too long. Try cutting back to the leaf node. For climbing roses, they may not need to be pruned every year. Look for and remove the oldest limbs of the bush to keep healthy. For Standard Roses, prune more severely to ensure a full year of new growth.
Step 3
If in doubt, go ahead and prune back hard in the Spring. Worst case scenario is that you don't have flowers on the plant that year. Deciding what to cut can be an art form: Make cuts at 45 degree angle and 1/4 inch above an outward facing bud. New growth will be upward and outward, creating a pretty shape and a healthy rose bush too!
Article by AnneZ, eHow Member
