How to Grow the Best ‐ Pruning Simply

This pruning technique was demonstrated with spectacular results at the San Jose Municipal Rose Garden. Three years ago the garden was in serious disrepair, landing on probation with the All‐America Rose Selection. Poor pruning practices had taken a toll.

By Beverly Rose Hopper

Pruning is rejuvenation; cutting away the unproductive so fresh strong growth can emerge. A time of new beginnings, of promise, even miracles. A plant that looks haggard at winter's end, can after being lovingly pruned, burst forth with beauty in the spring. For bushes in good condition, pruning is akin to a trip to the spa for a makeover; for those in rough shape the opportunity for rehab. Clipped and trimmed, diseased leaves removed, made ready for another year of blooms. Pruning is a time of rebirth, and yet right now across America, rose bushes are at risk. Legions of gardeners lopping shears in hand are cutting and chopping rose bushes almost to the ground in the name of "proper pruning," without regard for the natural height of the plant, growth habit or habitat. The excuse? "Ya gotta cut them back hard if ya want them to be any good." Sounds harsh? It is. It's easy to over‐do it. A little snip here, a little snip there . . . before you know it in a flurry of chopping most of the canes are gone. Leaves and stems are strewn all over the place. And if you have a conscience, you feel slightly sick "did I cut off too much?" If you find yourself in the circumstance, recognize the signs – you are an over pruner! Do yourself and the roses a favor. Get help. Stop before you do any more damage. Put down the pruning shears and step away from the rosebushes. Go inside and get a cup of decaf. Do some meditation and repeat the mantra "what do I want to achieve?" If the answer is "I want a lot of roses blooming in my garden" then accept you need to prune lightly. Do not remove more than 1/3 – 1/2 of the height. Leave a lot of canes on. Disregard advice to only leave 3 ‐5 canes on a Hybrid Tea. Most roses can't handle that, and certainly not most rose growers. Leave that stuff for hardcore rose exhibitors desperately searching for the one perfect bloom. I should know. . . I've been there. I used to be an over‐pruner. As an avid rose show exhibitor I wanted the very best blooms. If it meant sacrificing canes to produce a prize winning rose, it was worth it. No matter it sent the bush to an early grave, after all it would probably be replaced by next year's hot variety. But as the years rolled on I discovered pruning lightly had rewards – more roses. Pruning has a simple ratio – the harder you prune (more you take off) the less blooms you have but each bloom may be bigger. Conversely, the more you leave on the more blooms you will have. Most gardeners would prefer a sea of blooms to delight the senses rather than a couple eye‐popping blooms. Simply stated ‐ prune high for maximum display. This has been demonstrated with spectacular results at the San Jose Municipal Rose Garden. Three years ago the garden was in serious disrepair, landing on probation with the All‐America Rose Selection. Poor pruning practices (too harsh) had taken a toll. Along with Terry Reilly, I founded Friends of the San Jose Rose Garden, and organized a rescue effort. I knew the first step was to radically change the pruning process. Within a year, the garden went from probation to elation, revitalized and renewed, elevated to All‐America Rose Selection Test Garden status (one of only 23 in USA) along with other honors. What was this radical pruning program? Stakes were placed in each bed and marked for height. Volunteers were instructed to cut at that level (not below), and remove all foliage. Very simple. What about the traditional advice to open the center, remove crossing canes or thin growth? We ignored it. The results were in the roses, masses of blooms, and strong healthy bushes. This simplified pruning process also meant that volunteers of all ages and abilities could participate. In 2008 & 2009, roses were pruned at a rate of 33 rpm (roses per minute.) In 2010 we broke a new record, 935 volunteers pruned 4,000 rosebushes in one hour! For video made by the author "Pruning For Maximum Display" and more including Before/After photos of San Jose Municipal Rose Garden visit www.FriendsSJRoseGarden.org