Preparing your garden for the Spring: pruning your Roses

There is nothing quite like the site of nice healthy Roses in Spring and Summer. To get those healthy Roses in late Winter or early Spring with a good pruning and clean up of  the area.

Supplies needed:  Before you start work on your Roses their are  few items you should have with you. A good pair leather or heavy cloth gloves to protect your hands from thorns, a pair of long-handle pruning shears (loppers), a pair of short-handle pruning shears (preferably ratcheting), a rake, a wheel barrow or wagon, and either a bottle of glue or nail polish.

Now that you have your supplies you are ready to start getting your Roses ready for the growing season. When you begin here is a handy acronym that will help you remember the order the order of the process. It is P.R.U.N.E.

P:  This stands for preparation. Your preparation cut will be to bring all of the Rose canes to 30" or waist height. This will make it easier to see down into the Roses.

R:  This stands for removal. You want to eliminate all of the dead, diseased, and cross canes. This is important to make sure you have the healthiest canes.

U:  This stands for understanding your Roses. If you have the type of Rose suited for a long-stem you will want to keep fewer canes. If you have more of a bush variety then you will want more canes. This is also the step where you will be making you final pruning cuts of taking out any excess canes and cutting the remaining ones to between 16" and 24". Now, when you make your final cuts you want to make them at a 45 degree angle about one-quarter inch above a outward-facing bud. Once you make the cut you will need to use your glue or polish to seal the end of the Rose cane so boring insects can't get in and kill the plants.

N:  This stands for nothing left behind. This where you will need your rake to get all of the debris out from amidst the Roses. Be careful not to damage the base of the Rose plant when you are raking the debris. Then load all of the debris and discarded canes into your wheelbarrow to haul away.

E:  This stands for enjoy your Roses. Now that you have finished all your tasks all that is left to do is sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labor as your Roses provide you with plenty of blooms..