Pruning Roses in Spring

Hi Amanda,

Thank you for sharing your question! Here's what you asked: 

"I need to do a better job with my roses, but I do continue to get great flowers". 

Pruning roses in spring - If your beautiful rose bush produces great flowers, why prune them at all?! Your roses look just fine (except for maybe a few yellow leaves here and there, but nothing to be worried about), and as a general rule, pruning roses in spring is definitely not a must.

I'll explain what you can do in Spring in terms of maintenance, because that is the only kind of pruning you'll need until next winter. 

I assume that your main goal is to get the most from your rose bush during the spring-summer season...right? If that is the case, you'll need to learn what kind of pruning will encourage new growth and bloom. And so, that's where I will focus. Let's prune!

Pruning roses in spring - Bloom and design are everything 

Keep the shape - as you can see I marked the shape of the canopy of your rose bush, and there's no reason to prune any deeper than that. Remember, what we want to do is encourage new growth and enjoy new bloom.

Please note - Pruning roses in spring any lower than the way they are now, won't harm them. But I'm thinking about the future and next season. For pruning in winter, please read my pruning rose bushes page when the time comes. 

Where to prune exactly?  As you must know rose stems have a unique structure. Unique but very simple to understand. I have used a picture of my rose bush to explain, but what you need to know is this: Choose any stem you like, look for a 5 leave cluster (see the picture), and see where the leaves grow out of the stem. there's no reason to prune those leaves, the cutting point should be approximately 1/2 cm above where that cluster grows (I marked the pruning point with a red line). Pruning too high or too low may create problems, but at 1/2 cm above the stem of the leaves - you'll be just right.

Hope that helps. 

Happy pruning!

Yours

Eyal

Providing general guidelines on 'how to prune' any kind of plant is important, but there are plants, and there is YOUR plant. So despite there being loads of information on this site, I also provide specific and personalized support. If something wasn't clear, or you're not sure of your plant's name, simply send me a picture with your question. Use the form below and I'll get back to you. In the mean time, see what others are asking. 

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