Rose bushes are pruned to spark blossom and fresh vegetation, take out faulty or decayed wood and let more sun and air into the interior part of the plant by cutting off unrestrained vegetative growth. This provides better flow, enrich the overall view of the plant, and control the amount and quality of the bloom. Pruning rose bushes may also help in preventing the danger of plant pests by taking potential sites where these pests might dwell out.
So when is the best time? The perfect time for this process depends on the species of your rose plants and the position or locale where you are growing them. Most of the pruning is done when the leaf buds of your rose plant begin to swell or in early spring. To put it differently, pruning should be made before beginning of growth for the season. There are rose varieties that flower in the season. For these varieties, it’s best to prune them after they’ve flowered in the summer. You will not find their blooming until the next year if you prune them too early. In areas where there’s more wind and snow, pruning in late autumn is done to make the stems shorter so they do not snap or be blown away in the wind when weighed down with snow or break at the lowest part,.
What are the essentials of pruning rose bushes? First is to use tools which were honed and cleaned nicely. Be creative in enabling free flow of sun and air into the center part of the plant. Cuts must be made preferably over a stalk bud that is directed outwards at an angle of 45 degrees about 1 centimeter. Make not an irregular one and a neat cut. Cut out all flawed wood for example damaged, broken, dying or dead ones. The cut must be near to the lowermost part as possible.
All branches that appear withered or dried up have to be removed. Take out all skinny or lame limbs that are more slender than a pencil. You may close the cut with white paste if your place is being infested by pests. Take all disarranged off stems including those that are growing outside in the wrong orientation and those that are set too close to each other. Take out the shoots under the graft. Cut the remaining leaves off. (I do not always agree with pruning in the fall but if you want to then follow these steps.)
To become an able rose gardener, one needs patience, time, and effort. Always remember that practice makes perfect. In the beginning, you may do a very poor pruning, but bear in mind pruning blunders seldom kill a rose plant. It may appear deformed, but the rose plant will just grow out of the blunder. It is so much better to give it your best chance and learn from your mistakes than let them have unrestrained vegetation.