It's rose pruning time again. I could debate the merits of autumn pruning over spring, but I've always believed spring really is the best time to tackle pruning.
It's rose pruning time again. I could debate the merits of autumn pruning over spring, but I've always believed spring really is the best time to tackle pruning.
Rose pruning isn't a job to hurry. You need time to ponder, step back and deliberate, rather than rushing in with secateurs snipping everywhere. Every cut serves a purpose, so consider carefully. Pruning provides an opportunity to maintain the health, vigour and flowering performance of our roses.
Any old stems showing signs of dieback can be pruned away, and badly positioned and congested shoots can be cut out to shape the bush. Last year's stems need shortening to prevent new growth developing higher and higher up the bush, carrying flowers on increasingly leggy stems.
And then there's the actual position of the pruning cut. Of course you should prune just above a bud, but remember that the developing shoot will grow out in the direction that bud points. In most cases you want this to be outwards, keeping the centre of the bush light and open. Prune to an inward pointing bud and the shoot will grow inwards, crossing other stems to create a congested bush.
I remember, about 15 years ago, the Royal National Rose Society in St Albans conducted a trial comparing roses pruned conventionally with secateurs with those pruned with a hedgecutter. Their findings over the subsequent few years confounded the experts. Those roses pruned with a hedgecutter actually flowered better than those carefully pruned by hand!
How could this be? The thinking was that hand pruning removed many small, weak shoots — shoots which wouldn't have been pruned away by the hedgecutter. Left in place, these small sheets each produce a few leaves. These leaves produce more food — through the process of photosynthesis — for the bush. And the more food available to the bush, the better its flowering performance.
As far as I recall, in the short term the hedgecutter-pruned roses certainly gave a better display of flower, but with every passing year the bushes themselves became more and more congested. To many observers the bushes simply didn't look as attractive.
So while pruning allows us to 'tidy up' rose bushes, it's important not to get carried away. Dead shoots: bad. Crossing and rubbing stems: bad. Small shoots may not carry blooms, but their leaves contribute vauable food that enhances the flowering performance of the rest of the bush, so leave well alone!
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