The last few weeks have been incredibly busy! Connecticut Rose Society just hosted the ARS Yankee District Convention during the first weekend in April. I love these and I always open our home to traveling rose friends who present programs for us. Bob and I were thrilled to welcome Baldo Villegas and Mark and Karen Windham to our home for pre-and post-convention fellowship. These folks are like family to us and we love it when they come to stay! The convention was a great success!  I’ll get into greater detail at a later date, because, while we were busy with our visitors, Spring arrived! Time to jump into the garden and begin pruning.

Budding Out

It really hasn’t been consistently warm here yet, but the roses are waking up regardless! I do major pruning twice a year: gross pruning in the Fall (cutting back to prevent ice and snow events from crushing the rose canes) and fine pruning in the Spring (to rejuvenate and shape the plants.) Last year we didn’t have much of a winter at all, and real Spring weather arrived in March. I was also blooming last year by the second week of May! That is probably not going to happen this year.

This past winter, we had very cold and windy conditions which blackened a lot of canes. Trouble was, we had little to no snow cover to protect the exposed canes and we went below zero on a couple of occasions. I don’t cover my rosebushes for the winter because they are all planted with the crown of the plant +- 5” below soil level. So, even if I need to cut right down to the ground, the protected canes and buds below soil level will ripen and send up healthy new canes. Every so many years, I will prune hard in the Spring to encourage that new growth which will promote spectacular bloom in a few weeks.

Restorative Pruning

Here is what I do to prepare my rose gardens for a productive blooming season. First, I strap on my kneepads and pull on my gauntlet gloves to protect my knees, hands, and arms. I do a lot of crawling around in the garden this time of year because I want to see which buds on the canes have ripened up and are beginning to grow. Bob keeps my Felco #2 pruners nice and sharp and I also have a great pair of long-handled ratchet pruners for the big canes that need to come out.

After checking out the entire plant, I begin to cut the rose back. The first canes to come out are any that have turned black from windburn. Then, I check the other canes for winter damage and prune those out, as well. Canes that are nice and green I will usually prune back to an outward facing bud. This will send its first new cane up and away from the center of the plant. I always try to clear out the center at this time of year to promote good air circulation in and around the plants.

When I’ve removed all the damage from the cold winter, I’ll check the shape of the plant to make sure it’s pleasing and will grow in a shapely manner. When I’m finished pruning the bush, I will pull out my bottle of Elmer’s Glue (NOT school glue…it will wash off!) and seal up the ends of the canes. This will prevent borers from drilling into the canes and causing damage. The last thing I do before moving on to the next rose is to dig out any weeds or dandelions and rake out the entire area. This makes sure there are no old rose leaves hanging around that may have some fungus spores on them. A clean garden will get you off to a really good start to the season!

Pruning tells our roses that it’s time to wake up and grow! While I’m working with them, I talk to them and sing to them and I think they appreciate that. All the while, I am thrilled to welcome them back to the land of the blooming! There is something so special about welcoming back old garden friends…I can’t wait to see them again! Enjoy your pruning experience. I know your roses will!