Correct Way to Cut Back Rose Bushes

When to Prune

• In most of the United States and Canada, it's usually best to prune roses during the months of January and February. Most of the frost is gone and it's safer to prune roses without risking cold damage to the bush. If you live in an area where winters are more severe, wait until early spring, or just prune off bud growth. It's safe to prune roses when buds start to swell.

Tools

• Use special rose or leather gloves to protect your hands and wrists from thorns. A good, sharp pair of bypass hand shears will give a clean cut to branches and dry stems. Use a pair of long-handled bypass loppers for bigger or thicker branches. Do not use anvil head shears, as they cause damage to the plant, and give a less clean cut.

Deadheading

• Remove spent flowers throughout the year to encourage re-blooming. When spent flowers are left too long on a rose bush, they will begin to produce seeds. This will signal the bush to stop producing flowers in favor of spending its energy to produce seeds. Seek dead flowers on a cane that is strong enough to support new flower growth, and cut above a place with at least five leaves growing above a bud eye.

Pruning

• Prune newly planted rose bushes severely in the spring at a 45 degree angle. Leave only three strong canes about 4 to 5 inches long. This will encourage strong growth. Cut to ground level any diseased or dead shoots, and eliminate all thin, weak, and crossing shoots from the point where they originate. Leave only three to six pencil-thick canes. This will improve airflow to the plant, and decrease the likelihood of mold or fungus infestations..

  Remove suckers (new plants which grow from the main plant), as they will feed from the nutrients of the parent plant and hinder its growth. Remove the dirt from the area where the suckers are growing from and cut the suckers completely from the plant.

  Cut back canes for winter to about 28 inches in zones 2 to 4, 28 to 40 inches in zones 5 and 6 and 3 to 4 feet in zones 7 to 9 to prevent them from whipping when the wind blows. Remove all dead leaves and clippings.