The A-Z Pruning Handbook for New Zealand. by Jon Muller.

Rose (Rosa)

Family: Rosaceae

The subject of roses could occupy a whole book. Roses have been cultivated for hundreds of years and there are many different groups in cultivation now. You can broadly classify roses according to whether they are old or modern and their growth habit.

Old roses include such types as gallicas, damasks, China roses, and Bourbon roses. Modern roses include hybrid tea roses, rugosas, and floribundas.

Roses have a variety of growth habits, including bush, standard, climbers, ramblers, groundcovers and miniatures. They generally need full sun, good drainage and moisture over summer.

Pruning

There is a great deal of mystique regarding the pruning of roses, but it is not difficult and the aim is to improve flowering, plant vigour and health.
Most roses need regular pruning to keep them flowering well over many years and there are some general principles to bear in mind:

1. Your main pruning should take place once the frosts have past. This is because pruning stimulates new growth which is susceptible to frost damage. Also, the later you prune, the quicker the regrowth and sealing of wounds.
2. Cut into healthy wood, to an outward-facing bud with a slanting cut. Remove all dead and damaged wood.
3. Deadheading, or the removal of faded flowers over summer helps to stimulate further flowering. Cut back to a node past the flower.
4. Any growth coming from below the bud union where the cultivar was budded onto the rootstock should be removed. This is because these suckers are very vigorous and will compete with the desirable growth.
5. The main tools you will need are sharp, clean secateurs and pruning saws. They need to be sharp to get a neat, clean cut to prevent the spread of disease.
   

As there is such a huge range of roses, only the most common ones are dealt with here.

Hybrid tea roses

These popular roses have long-stemmed flowers and long, pointed buds. They are grown as bushes, standards and climbers.

As they bloom on new growth, hard pruning is needed to stimulate new growth. Some rose growers prune harder than others, but as a guideline remove between one-half to one-third of the growth.

Remove all weak and inward growing branches. Older canes that have become woody can be removed if there is adequate new healthy canes. Cut back desired canes to outward facing buds.

Standards can be pruned to create a bowl shape with an open centre.

A hybrid tea rose cut back to an outward facing bud on strong canes.

Floribunda and polyantha roses

Floribundas are grown as bushes, standards or climbers. Polyanthas are bush roses. Flowers are produced at the tips, with polyanthas having smaller but more flowers.( Polyantha means 'many flowers').

These roses do not need to be pruned as hard as hybrid teas. Remove about one-third of the growth.

Climbers

These produce flowers on lateral shoots. Some climbers, such as banksias, will flower well with no pruning, other than to restrain growth.
For climbing hybrid tea and floribunda roses, young plants are best left unpruned for two years until the canes are established on the support structure. During the first or second year, removing the 3D's is the main priority. In the following years, cut back the laterals to a node, leaving two to three buds. Canes older than four years should be removed to the base as long as there are new canes coming on.

Miniatures

These roses are becoming increasingly popular. The main task is to remove dead and diseased material. They generally only need light pruning back to nodes using secateurs.. If you cut between nodes it will not harm these plants as they have so many buds. If some shoots are very vigorous, cut to a node to balance the shape of the plant.

Groundcovers

These roses have also become very popular. They can be trimmed to keep them compact. Use secateurs to cut back to nodes, although they are often cut back with hedge clippers!

Propagation

From softwood stem cuttings for miniatures, or by budding onto rootstock for hybrid tea roses.

Excerpts

How to prune Camellias & Roses

Key to Pruning

Pruning Tips:
Pruning to the bud
Branch removal
Trees and the law
Arborists
Deciduous shrubs
Hedges
Plant care
Tools

Introduction
Table of Contents

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Acknowledgements