When to prune roses?

When to prune perpetual roses?

When to prune perpetual roses? These perpetual roses flower on current year’s wood. Main pruning of roses is carried out between 15 February and 15 April depending on region, once severe frosts have passed. It is also possible to carry out a light pruning earlier in the season; for this refer to our article: Pruning roses in autumn and Christmas pruning.

Pruning calendar for roses

Here is a calendar for pruning roses according to region:

Of course, this calendar is indicative. Obviously, if your garden is sheltered, you can afford to bring pruning work forward.

Be aware that the later you prune, the later flowering will occur in the season. But beware, pruning stimulates resumption of growth. In other words, if you prune too early you risk your roses restarting during a mild spell and shoots being scorched if another frost period follows. To avoid this, nothing beats observing your roses.

Roses’ awakening

Pay attention to the development of your roses’ buds. Indeed, well-swollen buds will give you the green light! Some roses break bud earlier than others. To find out more, consult our advice sheet dedicated to phenological indicators.

Awakening of vegetation

And if you prefer to prune early for organisational reasons: remember to prune longer than you would at the appropriate time. That way, if the rose’s shoots suffer a frost, you can always prune back a little shorter.

→ Finally, to learn how to prune, consult our advice sheet: “Pruning roses“

When to prune non-perpetual roses?

When should non-perpetual roses be pruned? Nothing could be simpler: roses flower on last year’s wood, so if you prune them at the end of winter you won’t have any flowers! Therefore The right time for pruning non-perpetual roses is in summer, around June/July, just after their flowering.