How to Trim Rock Roses

Poor, rocky soil is no problem for the rockrose -- this shrub flowers and flourishes in soils that make many flowering plants wilt. Rockrose is a catch-all nickname for plants belonging to two genera: Halimium and Cistus. There is also a hybrid of the two: x Halimiocistus. Rockroses do best in a Mediterranean-type climate, with wet winters and dry summers. They are perennial with either pink or white flowers. Rockroses do best within zones 8 and 10 on the U.S. Department of Agriculture Plant Hardiness Zone Map.

Things You'll Need

• Garden snips
• Pruning shears

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Instructions

1. • 1

     Deadhead the rockrose periodically throughout its blooming season by using your thumb and forefinger or garden snips to clip off the flower.

   • 2

     Remove dead and broken branches in early spring. Cut out stems that protrude beyond the shape you desire for the rockrose.

   • 3

     Prune the entire shrub after it finishes blooming. Although the rockrose doesn't require pruning, other than to remove damaged and dead branches, pruning it back to the size you desire won't harm the shrub.