Tips and Techniques for Pruning Roses like a Pro

The first two articles in this three-part series on pruning roses covered everything you needed to know to give your rosebushes a decent pruning. Now I'll share a few tips that will take your rose pruning skills to new heights (bad pun intended).

One of the most useful things I've ever heard regarding the process of rose pruning was the statement, "You have to take to give." In other words, cutting away what's necessary for your rosebush to thrive, will reward you later. It can be quite difficult for beginning rose growers to be as ruthless as needed during the pruning process. Sometimes you have to cut off what seems to you to be nice, healthy canes that might produce some blooms.

What you need to understand, is that a growing rose bush has only so much energy. It makes sense to allocate that limited energy to new development rather than diverting it towards older canes that are not likely to produce many good roses, anyway. Now, each spring when I'm out in my garden pruning my three dozen bushes, I repeat this mantra over and over, lest I forget.

Which is best-light, moderate or severe pruning?

Light pruning involves a minimum of cutting, with only twiggy growth and damaged wood removed. The tall bushes produce many short-stemmed blooms.

Moderate pruning involves cutting away about half the length of each cane, leaving five to ten canes (approx. two to four feet tall). This produces plenty of nice blooms along with some exhibition quality.

Severe pruning should be employed only for exceptionally healthy rosebushes that are vigorous growers. This extreme level of pruning involves leaving only three to five very short canes, often less than one foot tall.

For roses, there is no one-size-fits-all level of pruning. The ideal pruning height also depends upon the natural growth habits of each species and variety of rosebushes. When considering how much to prune, it's wise to consult the tag which came with your rose, or look up the variety in a rose directory. Trying to change the natural growth habit will only result in frustration for both gardener and rosebush.

Shaping your bushes

Modern rosebushes should form a classic urn shape. The center is left open, with canes arching outward and upward. Along with forming a nicer-looking rosebush, keeping the center open creates better air circulation and helps to prevent diseases such as mildew. An airy open center also allows light to reach the interior growth, which aids the metabolic process. Don't feel bad about cutting out good canes that appear in the middle of the bush. The blooms rarely do well anyway, and are often damaged from rubbing against other stems.

Spreading canes apart

If several good canes on a bush are too close to each other, rather than cut one of them out, there is a neat trick you can use to spread them apart. Cut a small section from a cane you've already removed and push it into thorns on the canes you want to separate. After a few months the canes will have grown apart and this temporary wedge can be removed, though it's not absolutely necessary to do so.

Learn from the past

Pruning is a time when it pays to keep a detailed notebook of growth and bloom habits, along with what worked for you and what didn't. If a rosebush was a prolific bloomer and vigorous grower last year, you might want to cut it lower and/or leave more canes on it. If you cut your bush short and it performed poorly, leave it a little longer the next year.

Work with what you have

Sometimes you might not be able to get the ideal urn shape with the open center and still have a decent number of canes left on your rosebush. If a healthy-looking cane grows from the center but it's one of the best on the bush, you should probably leave it.

Experiment with different pruning techniques to see what produces the best results for your rose variety and your particular growing area. Most of all, remember to take time to enjoy the blooms of all your hard labor!