How Important Is It To Keep Up With Pruning My Rose Bushes?

The reason to keep up with pruning rose bushes is to increase the health of the plant and regulate its shape. Learn proper technique and tips below.

The prime time to prune roses is in the early spring. Pruning has two main advantages: it maintains strong plants and enhances their visual appeal.

​While trimming can be a complicated job, keep in mind that it’s difficult to kill a rose bush with lousy technique and lots of mistakes will at some point grow back. Furthermore, most arborists agree that a good try at pruning is better than not trying at all.

How to Prune

Begin by getting rid of any diseased, damaged, or dead wood, trimming it back to where it’s in good condition. It can be hard to determine if a stem is dead or not because its coloration can be the same. A way to realize for sure is to snip off a small piece from the tip of a stem. If it’s green inside, it’s alive. If it’s dark brown, it’s dead.

Maintaining a Healthy Rose Bush

To stay healthy, roses require lots of air circulation. Eliminate any big limbs that run through the middle of the bush. These will diminish the airflow when the leaves develop. Besides, take off the shoots that are growing over other plant parts and any little stems.

Make these cuts as near to the plant as you can. If a little stub remains, new growth will occur. After cuts are made, close them with a paste to stop disease and cane borer issues.

Once you have opened up the middle of the plant, prune for appearance and shape. How you trim will depend on the sort of rose plant you have. Different types necessitate different approaches. For instance, you want to prune old garden roses stem by stem cautiously. For miniature roses, a buzz cut will do. Shrub roses have to be trimmed back and don’t require heavy trim work.

Once you’re done, you want to clean up. Rake any debris or leaves from under the plant, so you don’t have a home for invasive pests.

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