Should a Rosa Rugosa Be Cut Back?

Reasons To Cut It Back

• If you prune your rosa rugosa, it will produce fresh new canes and still bloom in the same season. The shrub will be healthier if you remove any diseased or weak canes. There will be more air circulation among canes and less crowding, which will improve the plant's overall health.

Reasons Not To Cut It Back

• Cutting back a rosa rugosa is a daunting task, especially if you have a lot of them. Rosa rugosa is often grown as a hedge, which will take time and effort to prune, potentially generating many scratches along the way because it is so prickly. If you leave the bush intact for the winter, you will get to enjoy its colorful rose hips. An unpruned rosa rugosa shrub has its place in an informal, casual setting, often seen along the sand dunes of the shoreline.

Other Considerations

• A compromise solution would be to lightly trim your rosa rugosa by removing all accessible dead wood and other obvious problem canes. On the other hand, you could go to the opposite end of the spectrum and cut it down about a foot above ground with electric hedge clippers. This will actually speed up the cleanup because there will be less handling of the individual canes. Another option would be to prune it every other year. Your approach will depend on the particular variety of rosa rugosa and the conditions and aesthetics where it is grown. Some are taller, thicker or pricklier than others. Your tolerance and ability to handle the extremely prickly canes will affect your decision. Because the bush is so resilient, it will respond well to most any treatment.

Pruning Tips

• Be sure to wear thick gloves designed for rose pruning that extend high up on the forearm. Use sharp tools with long handles to make the cleanest, easiest cuts. Eye and skin protection is highly recommended. Create a strategy for cane removal so that you only have to handle them once. Keep a tarp or large receptacle near the pruning area so that is all you will have to move. If you do have to move a pile of canes, you can make a handy tool by cutting the handles off two leaf rakes with wide heads. The two heads make it easy to pick up the canes without using your hands.