Good Day and

Welcome!

The Mt. Lebanon Library Garden Speakers Series

“Grab Your Gloves and Sharpen You Pruners”

The Basics of Pruning Roses

Presented by

Bill DornConsulting Rosarian and ARS Apprentice Judge

President, The Pittsburgh Rose SocietyAssistant Director, Penn-Jersey District of The American Rose Society

April 25, 20201:00 PM EST to 2:00 PM EST

Mt. Lebanon Public Library Garden Speakers SeriesMt. Lebanon, PA

Disclaimer

The thoughts, opinions, and recommendations in this presentationare of the presenter only. They do not represent the thoughts,opinions, and recommendations of The American Rose Society andThe Pittsburgh Rose Society. The screenshot of the Pittsburgh RoseSociety’s website is used with permission.

There will be time for your questions, observations, and commentsat the end where you may type your questions in the chat box. Ourhost for today will facilitate.

HT ‘Sunset Celebration’

Windgap Rose Gardens

At the end of today’s presentation I will give my

contact information for those who want a PDF

copy of the slides emailed to you.

RationaleSome of the most common questions I am asked are questions about pruningroses. At first glance pruning roses can seem overwhelming and complicated.However, it does not have to be so. This presentation will attempt to keepthings simple and not so overwhelming.

Windgap Rose Gardens

And now, on with the

ObjectivesWe will review the basics of pruning roses and at the end of this presentation

you will be able to answer the following four questions:

1. Why do we prune our roses?

2. When do we prune our roses?

4. How do we prune our roses?

3. What tools do we use to prune our roses?

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My experience is based on USDA Zones 5a and 6b.

Gertrude Jekyll1843 - 1932

British Horticulturist and Garden Designer

"A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness;

it teaches industry and thrift; above all it teaches entire

trust."

My Garden Philosophical InspirationXXXX

But first a little aboutWindgap Rose Gardens

My rose gardens have been a work in progress. I began serious planning for the garden in 2014 with a small corner garden. Then it progressed and expanded to a garden along the fence.

Expansion continued and for 2020 I nowmaintain seven gardens totaling 110 cultivarsmade up of hybrid teas, floribundas,grandifloras, miniatures, minifloras, shrubs,and climbers.

Windgap Rose Gardens

Windgap Rose Gardens

Windgap Rose Gardens

Windgap Rose Gardens

HT ‘Electron’

HT ‘In The Mood’

HT ‘Let Freedom Ring’

HT ‘Love and Peace’

HT ‘Gemini’

HT ‘Bride’s Dream’

Some Varieties atWindgap Rose Gardens

HT ‘Marilyn Monroe’

(Front L-R) 'Moonstone', 'Gemini', and 'Marilyn Monroe'(Back L-R) 'St. Patrick' and 'Sunset Celebration'

Windgap Rose Gardens

Why do we prune our roses?

Question #1

If we reflect on the nature of a rose bush, pruning will begin tomake sense. We must remember that roses are plants and as suchthey have an intricate chemical communication system withinthemselves made up of sugars and starches. When we prune, westimulate this communication system to produce growth leading toblooms.

Pruning provides the needed outside stress, a good stress that tellsthe plant to continue doing what it does best, that is to grow andproduce canes, buds, flowers and seeds.

Keep in mind that the nature of a rose bush is to position itself toproduce seeds. This insures the continued self-perpetuating of thecultivar.

What we most admire in the rose bloom is nothing more that therose’s big advertisement that seeks to attract bees and otherinsects to help the pollination of the flower and hence seedproduction.

PRUNING ENCOURAGES GROWTH

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When do we prune our roses in the spring?

Question #2

Answer: after the forsythia blooms!

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There are two important times of the year when we prune our roses:

Spring and Fall

Spring pruning begins after we see the forsythia bloom in our yards orout in public. This is the best time of the year to do major pruning. Ourroses have been dormant during the winter. As the soil warms up andspring rains nourish the roots, the rose bush will begin its wonderfulchemical communication within itself.

Fall pruning is much simpler and straight forward task. After we seesigns that the rose bush going into dormancy, i.e. after a few frostsand growth is declining sometime in late November in this area, it istime to fall prune and to mound the bush with soil or mulch as awinter blanket. So…

In the Spring look for the forsythia blooming.

In the Fall look for the frost!

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What tools do we use to prune our

roses?

Question #3

GlovesEye Protection

PrunersSaw

Loppers

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Use a good pair of leather gloves that will protect your fingers and hands from rose thorns (prickles).

Consider a pair of leather gauntlet gloves that are longer than regular gloves and that protects you arms.

Gloves

Remember to glove up!

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Eye Protection

Always wise to protect our eyes!

Pruners (Secateurs)

Scissor-cut type Anvil type (ratchet)

These are preferable and will make a clean cut.

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Loppers (short or long handled.)Used for cutting larger canes.

Also helpful if we have a difficult time bending.x

Folding Saw

Used to remove dead wood too large for loppers.

A Few Words About Tool Care

Nothing is worse than going out to the garden to prune and find that yourpruners are dull and dirty and caked with residue from previous uses.

It is important to keep your pruning tools clean and sharp. One cleaningmethod that works for me comes from one of our rose society memberswho has seen many years of pruning roses. He suggests spraying Easy Offoven cleaner on the blades. Allow the solution to sit for awhile and scrubthe blades with fine steel wool. This works for me. Use the fume free EasyOff product.

For sharpening my pruners I use a professional sharpening service. Keepingyour pruners well lubricated is also important. Invest in a quality pair ofpruners and you will be thankful that you did and they will last for years.

Rosarians will often sanitize their pruners between roses by wiping themwith alcohol or other disinfectant. This insures that any disease is not spreadfrom one bush to another.

Quality Pruner Brand Names

Felco – Barnel – Gonicc - Fiskars

How do we prune our roses?

Question #4

Practice makes perfect!

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The 6 “Ds” of Spring PruningFor Spring pruning (after the forsythia have bloomed) the following

canes should be pruned away:

Dead

Dinky

Diseased

Damaged

Diagonal

Directional

Prune ¼ inch above outward-facing bud eye

Canes smaller than diameter of a pencil.

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Your hand is an excellent reminder about how to do spring pruning. Keep the center clean and clear and prune to five or six canes. This will shape your rose

bush to a vase-like shape.

The Pruning Hand!

Shrub roses are very forgiving when it comes to pruning. Essentially you want to prune the

bush to your desired shape.

Pruning Shrubs

Spring 2020 Pruning

Pruning shapes the bush and encourages new

growth!

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Pruning Climbers

Some of you may have the climber varieties growing on trellises, fences orwalls. These varieties need to be pruned differently.

There are two types of canes on climbers: main canes growing from thebase of the plant and lateral canes that grow off the main canes.

The climber will produce more flowers if the main canes are positionedhorizontally on the trellis. Hence, we train the main canes on the trellis byweaving them back and forth on the trellis. You can use jute string or evencable ties to secure the canes as long as the ties are not too tight.

From these main canes the laterals can grow, producing flowers. It is safeto prune the lateral canes to about 12 inches. Do not prune the maincanes unless a main cane is very old. Each year we train the main canes togrow on the trellis. Some main canes can grow to be 20 feet long.

A few photos may help…

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There are two types of canes: main and lateral.

Train the main canes on your supporting structure in a

horizontal fashion.

Prune the laterals only to about 12 inches.

Pruning Climbersa closer look

November 2018 May 12, 2019

Completed

Windgap Rose Gardens Windgap Rose Gardens

Windgap Rose Gardens

Spring

Pruning

Fall Pruning

Fall pruning is much simpler and less involved. We should becareful to not get too carried away with pruning. Essentially wewant to prepare the rose bush for winter. We do this toward theend of November in this area after Thanksgiving.

Focus on very tall canes that if not pruned back can be whipped bythe winter winds thus creating wind-rock stress at the base of thebush. Remember newer roses have more shallow root structurescompared to well established bushes that have been in ground formany years.

You also want to mound your bushes with soil or mulch to helpprotect the bud union on the bush at the bottom. In this area Zones5a to 6b, we plant the bud union at least 2-3 inches below groundlevel. Mounding the bush will add additional protection. Roses arevery susceptible to freeze-thaw cycles during the winter, creatingtemperature variations. Mounding seeks to insulate against theseconditions.

Completed Fall Pruning and Winterizing

Windgap Rose Gardens

Let’s Review Pruning Basics!1. Begin spring pruning after the forsythia has bloomed.

2. Use appropriate pruning tools and protection.

3. Use the “6 D’s of Punning.”

4. Begin fall pruning toward the end of November after a few frosts.

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Three local nurseries/garden centers known for good rose stock and garden tools and supplies.

Trax Farms528 Trax RoadFinleyville, PA 15332412.835.3246www.traxfarms.com

Chapons Greenhouse4846 Streets Run RoadPittsburgh, PA 15236412.881.1520www.chaponsgreenhouse.com

Hahn Nursery5443 Babcock Blvd.Pittsburgh, PA 15237412.635.7475www.hahnnursery.com

For more information about roses:• The Pittsburgh Rose

Society

• www.pghrosesociety.org

• The American Rose Society

• www.rose.org

HT ‘St. Patrick’Screen shot used with permission of Dr. David McKibben, Webmaster, Pittsburgh Rose Society

Windgap Rose Gardens

Consider joining the Pittsburgh Rose Society

Two levels of annual dues:

$25/year/householdEntrance to all events

Free consultationsFree 4 month membership in

American Rose SocietyPrinted monthly newsletter via USPS

JOIN TODAY!It is educational and fun!

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$20/year/householdEntrance to all events

Free consultationsFree 4 month membership in

American Rose SocietyMonthly newsletter via Email

www.pghrosesociety.org

Thank you!

You have been a great audience!

Windgap Rose Gardens

Please stay safe and stay healthy!

Questions and

Comments

Contact Information:Bill Dorn

Email: cbibill@hotmail.comPhone: 412-853-8487

If you would like a PDF copy of thispresentation, email me and state“Pruning copy” in the subject line.