Q.Rose Bushes
I have several shrub roses that I inherited from the previous owners of my house. I unfortunately had to have several surgeries the first 2 years we lived here & could not care for them & my husband refused to listen to me in caring for them & used the weed eater/loppers to keep cutting them back. Anyway, my question, they have grown & have turned from the green stems to the wood quite a ways up 2-3 feet & have the green stem upward from there. They still have beautiful full blooms & are the best smelling roses that I have ever smelled. What kind I do to help them return to their previous glory? Can the wooded stems be cut back & them grow back normally next year? Can they be savaged ? Please help me, I really don’t want to lose them if I don’t have to, now that I’m back on my feet & can care for them! Thank you, Teresa
I prune my bush roses gently at the end of autumn, just enough to prevent them rocking in the winter wind and coming out of the ground. I further prune them quite severely at the end of February, leaving about 12 inches of hard wood. The new growth will soon start as the weather warms up. When you do the February prune it is important that you take out completely any dead wood, and give space in the middle of the plant for air to circulate.
