March 16, 2001, Newsletter Issue #17: Spring Pruning Bush Roses.
Tip of the Week
Have a good look at each rose bush before you prune.
(1)Cut Out The Dead Wood.
This will be light brown or black and of a dry, brittle texture. Live wood is always green! If in doubt, gently scrape the bark of the suspect branch with your thumbnail.
If the wood underneath is light green/white....it`s alive.
(2)Cut Out Damaged Branches.
Branches that wind or snow has broken low down the plant, need cutting out altogether.
(3)Cut out Crossing Stems.
Remove branches that are rubbing against each other. The area where stems rub would become a weakspot that would cause the branch to break in summer.
(4) Cut Out Inward Growing Branches.
A growing rose bush should ideally be wine-glass shaped. Remove the any branches growing into the middle of the plant and avoid later congestion.
(5)Reduce The Height.
Reduce the remaining branches to half their overall height. Use an angled cut away from the immature bud on the stem. Ideally, you should cut about one quarter of an inchabove an outward facing bud.
(6)Weak Side Branches.
Thin weak side branches can be cut back to around a half an inch.
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