There are many benefits to pruning your roses. They will be healthier and it will prolong the life of the rose. You will also have more flowers and the shape of the bushes will be more attractive.

When is the best time to prune your roses? “When the forsythia is blooming” and “after President’s Day” are two recommendations that are frequently heard. Both of these are good advice. In general, mid-late February is a good time to get the job done. And if you can’t get to it this month, early March is fine too.

Now that the timing is established, how do you prune roses? It generally depends on the type of rose.

First, have all the tools you need at hand. Bypass pruning shears will be your basic tool but, depending on the size of the rose, you might need loppers and a pruning saw. A disinfectant (alcohol, Listerine, Pine-sol) is recommended to clean tools as you go from plant to plant (a small spray bottle of alcohol works well for this). Finally, a good pair of gloves is essential.

Hybrid Tea & Grandiflora Roses

These roses benefit from hard pruning.

• First, remove any canes that are dead, damaged or diseased. If the cane is only partially damaged, cut it back to healthy growth. Once those are removed, cut any canes that are spindly or less than the thickness of a pencil.
• Stand back and look at the plant. If you see any canes that are crossing or growing at awkward angles or canes that are growing inward, take them out. Aim for a vase-shaped habit and open up the center as much as possible.
• The remaining canes should be cut back to about 1-3 feet tall (generally, younger roses can be taken lower).
• When making the cuts, look for an outward facing bud and cut about 1/4″ above it. Make cuts at a slight angle.
• If possible, remove any leaves that are still on the plant. If this is not possible, at least remove any that have blackspot.

Think of Grandiflora roses as hybrid teas on steroids. These roses are larger in size and more vigorous. These roses are basically pruned in the same fashion as hybrid teas but more canes can be left.

Grandiflora Rose – before pruning

After pruning

Shrub Roses, Floribundas and David Austin Roses

These roses have a denser growth habit. Very little pruning is needed the first and second season with the exception of removing diseased or damaged canes. From the third season onward –

• Cut out diseased, damaged or dead wood.
• Thin out the bush by removing twiggy growth and the oldest and thickest canes.
• Cut back the remaining canes by about one third.

Cut out all the three Ds (dead, damaged, diseased) canes

A shrub rose before pruning

After pruning

Climbing Roses

Climbing Roses are treated differently. They have main and lateral canes. For maximum bloom, train the main canes horizontally. Lateral canes will form and reach upward and produce flowers.

• The main canes should not be cut unless they are damaged or growing in the wrong direction.
• The lateral canes extend from the main canes and these produce the blooms. These canes can be cut back to 3-5 inches.
• As always, remove any damaged, dead or diseased canes.

Miniature Roses

These are the easiest roses to prune! Basically, just cut or shear them back within a few inches from the ground.

Miniature rose before pruning

Miniature rose after pruning