This is the safest time to prune modern roses. Plants are now dormant enough to quickly respond to the stimulus that pruning provides to the plants. Old roses, climbers and ramblers, should at this time only have non-productive wood removed. After blooming in Spring/Summer these types will generate new wood for flowering in the following Spring.

If you followed my suggestions on Summer Trimming (February), there will not be as much work involved in pruning the plants. We took the opportunity to remove unproductive wood at that time and less work is required now. Failing that, approach pruning your modern roses first of all by distinguishing old from new wood, and work to retain only young wood on the plant. Any wood growing into and across the centre of the plant is to be removed whether old or young. Aim to give the plant a vigorous future by now removing oldest canes at the base of the plant, hopefully leaving 4 or 5 young canes for the coming season. These canes will be trimmed from the top down just above a plump bud in the leaf axil.

Do not prune modern roses by cutting rose canes crew-cut style. This perpetuates the continuing existence of non-productive old wood, and considerably retards development of laterals on new wood, by effectively cutting to immature buds down the canes. Our climate is kinder than English conditions. We do not need to prune hard as is necessary there. We have inherited pruning methods from English books, but they do not apply in more temperate zones. There is no mystery to rose pruning. The object is to remove canes to encourage the plant to produce new canes. Cut out the old to create the new.