- Pruning is an important part of rose care, not only because you take off the dead flowers, but also because proper pruning is necessary for the health of the bush. Proper pruning also increases the number of roses.
- Floribunda roses are a shrub, and instead of separate flowers, they grow in clusters. There can be as few as three or as many as 15 roses in each cluster.
Hybrid tea roses are one of the oldest and most popular. They have one single rose on each stem.
Grandiflora is a combination of the Froribunda and hybrid. It grows tall like a hybrid, up to 6 feet, and has clusters like the Floribunda, but the clusters are hybrids, not Floribunda style.
Climbing roses are the ones you see on trellises or along a fence. They have short stems on long canes and hundreds of flowers when they reach full height.
Tree roses are beautiful, but they are the ones most sensitive to the cold winters. They were developed by a series of grafting a root to a long stem and then grafting a rose bush on top of that. - Wait until the danger of frost has passed in late spring. If you prune a rose bush and then a frost hits, the open cut will allow the frost to enter and result in severe damage. If you live in the northern zones, prune your roses way back in the late fall and cover what is left for winter protection. The cold winds can break off the larger growths, frost will enter the plant and you will probably lose it.
- Floribunda roses should be pruned back to the last three or four buds from the base during their first spring in the ground. Then, every spring, cut out all the branches that look less sturdy. The stronger branches should only be pruned lightly. During the season, prune the new growth very lightly and the older, harder growth more aggressively.
Hybrid tea roses and Grandiflora should have all the damaged growth pruned off. Remove any of the suckers, those growths that come from the roots of the plants. They will only take away strength from the roses. Keep only the greenest healthy growth and cut them back to about 12 to 24 inches.
Climbing roses should not be pruned during their first year. In the second year, keep about five of the best shoots and cut them down so they are just 3 to 4 feet high. In their third year, cut off about 1/3 of the height of the growth. Thereafter, cut off all of the dead and severely damaged growth every spring and cut the remaining back by 1/3.
Tree roses should only be pruned on the top graft, never the two lower ones. Follow the directions for pruning the specific rose that makes up the top of the tree. - Use the proper tools and make sure they are sharp. You need to make clean cuts. You will not only get a better cut, but it will be easier on your hands as well. Buy yourself a pair of bypass pruning shears. They make the cleanest cuts. For the thicker growth, use a pair of bypass loopers with long handles. The long handles give you more power, which you need for the big stuff. If it is really old, tough growth, you may need a pruning saw. Additionally, wear a good pair of garden gloves.
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