subject: Prune back those rose bushes now ! [print this page] Prune back those rose bushes now ! Prune back those rose bushes now !
Keeping your garden tidy and clearing up the leaves should keep you occupied, but if you have roses in your garden, now is the time to act to keep them healthy.
Follow these basic steps for modern rose bushes;
1. Prune when plants are dormant, between when the leaves start to fall off the trees and when the buds are beginning to emerge in spring.
2. First cut out all dead or poorly looking stems. Cut back to live green tissue inside the stems, removing all the old brown material.
3. Any thin stems or those rubbing together should also be given the chop as these are unlikely to come to flower.
4. Having kept just healthy stems cut all of them back by a third of their length, down to an outward facing bud, about 12 inches above soil level.
5. Also, keep the plants uncongested in the centre as this lets light and air into the rose encouraging healthy growth.
For other types of rose, such as old garden roses, species roses, climbing roses and ramblers, the basic principles still apply.
Roses are actually quite easy to grow, and most problems can quite easily be dealt with. Likely problems are likely to include diseases like mildew or blackspot. These you can usually treat with a fungicide.
Pest such as Greenfly can usually be controlled with insecticide.
As a general rule, your roses are less likely to catch a disease or suffer other problems if they are well looked after.
Don't be afraid to cut back your roses - they will return healthy and colourful in the spring.
