• Photo by Martha from The Contained Gardener
• Growing Roses

It’s Time to Prune your Roses!

Pruners: Bypass pruners that work similar to scissors. Anvil type pruners will crush your rose stems.

Pruning:
• Remove the top 1/2 to 2/3 of the rose bush.
• Remove any dead canes and small twiggy growth.
• Remove any canes that are crossing through the middle of the bush or rubbing against other canes.
• Make your cuts about 1/4 inch above bud eye that is facing out from the center of the bush.
• Strip all leaves from the canes.

Cleanup:

• Clean up all the old dead leaves and throw them in the trash, not your compost pile. Dead leaves can often have mildew spores and other diseases on them that can infest your compost pile and create problems later on.

Feed:
Do not fertilize your roses this month.

Water:
Continue to water your roses, once or twice a week depending on the daytime temperatures. Be sure you are deep watering to a depth of 18 — 24 inches. Roses in pots typically need to be watered more often than roses in the ground.