The Rose Pruning – Beauty Treatment in Spring

Beauty doesn’t come by chance. The same goes for roses. For roses to bloom abundantly and beautifully in the garden during summer, a visit to the "hairdresser" is on the schedule in spring.

Pruning roses in spring is a must if you want the flowers to be especially beautiful in summer. And since roses are most beautiful when they can proudly show off their blooms, they can't skip the pruning.

Many people are familiar with the problem: you know that the beautiful new rose in the garden needs to be pruned, but the question is: when? Nature gives a signal for overwhelmed hobby gardeners: the right time to prune roses is when the forsythia blooms in spring. And it’s definitely hard to miss in the garden. Once no more strong frosts are expected, the roses can get their new "hairstyles." If the forsythia is already blooming but the nighttime temperatures still drop significantly below freezing, it’s a good idea to hold off on pruning the roses. The cut edges are very delicate and wouldn’t survive the frost.

Every gardener's heart softens when they have to trim their beloved plant. But the rose will reward you with lush growth and beautiful blooms. The general rule for pruning roses is to use sharp tools. A sharp pair of scissors is especially important for pruning, as it creates smooth cutting surfaces. This minimizes damage to the plant and helps it more than it harms. Additionally, the cutting tool should always be clean. This is essential to prevent the spread of diseases. Always cut at a slant. The simple reason for this is that no water can collect in or on the cut surface, which could lead to diseases. Prune about 5 millimeters above a bud that faces outward. If a rose has only a few strong shoots left, it will recover in a bushy manner after a radical prune.

A spring pruning is only done on roses that bloom multiple times a year. Roses that only bloom once a year bloom on shoots from the previous year. If they were pruned in the spring, they wouldn't have any flowers during their blooming period. Therefore, only roses that bloom multiple times a year are pruned in the spring. This includes bush roses, hybrid tea roses, shrub roses, and climbing roses. When pruning is done, frost damage and wild shoots can also be removed. This keeps the roses young and fresh, ensuring a beautiful sea of roses in the summer. Speaking of summer: it can definitely arrive after the rose pruning!