Q.how to prune music box roses
I prune the music box roses in the fall. During the growing season they are getting too big and I want to know how to prune during the growing season without losing all the beautiful blooms?
Music box shrub roses grow to be 36" in height. If you need something shorter, look into the miniature roses like the Oso Easy series. Otherwise, switch to pruning hard in early spring just as the leaf buds are swelling. (This is often close to when forsythia bloom.) Prune down to 9 inches or so and remove all canes except a framework of 5-7 outward-growing, green canes. They still will grow to 3 feet in one season; it is in their DNA. Experiment with giving them less nitrogen. Since landscape roses often bloom in flushes every 6-8 weeks, prune mid-summer right after a flush of bloom to the desired height. Remove inward growing canes and cut back tall canes to a lateral that is at least 1/3 the diameter of the cane that is being cut. You could also cut back to a dormant bud.
