Do you know there are over 300 species of roses? If you have roses in your garden, they need your attention to thrive.
Among the gardening tasks for late winter/early spring, pruning your roses is near the top of the list. The first thing I do is put on my gardening gloves. Do you really want to prune a rose without protection? Trust me, you don’t.
Now is the Best Time for Pruning Your Roses
You want to prune roses now because if you prune them once they start putting out new growth, you can cut off new flowering growth. And you don’t want to prune them at summer’s end because that can stimulate new growth going into fall or winter when they otherwise wouldn’t be growing. And because pruning stimulates new growth, and roses bloom on new growth, pruning right now will give your roses a “push” in the right direction.
How to Prune Your Roses Step by Step
The first thing to do is remove any dead, diseased, or dying canes. Then remove any larger canes that are rubbing each other as that can cause damage to either or both of them. If there are a lot of smaller canes bunched together, thin them out to help the air circulation. Last, you can trim the entire bush back by about a third.
Cut canes at a 45° angle just above an outward-facing bud. That allows the cut end to dry out before insects can move in.
Now would also be a good time to apply a dormant oil. Apply when temperatures are going to be over 40 degrees for at least 24 hours. Dormant oils can help to control insect pests like aphids, mealy bugs, thrips, and whitefly.
Last but certainly not least, one of the best times you can feed your rose, (the first time of the season) is right after it’s been pruned since pruning stimulates new growth and roses bloom on new growth.
Your Rose Bushes Will Say “Thank You”!
By caring for your roses now, your rose bushes will thank you by providing more blooms to brighten your yard and spirit.