Roses need some attention every year for the best flower display and healthy growth. I am posting this in mid January because this is the time for most Southwest gardeners to do some of that care.

Let me start by saying that you shouldn’t feel guilty or apologetic about growing roses in the desert. A low-water garden can certainly include roses (according to the seven principles). Just please do take good care of  your roses so that they are low water users and they reward you with lots of flowers.

Also, if you look at the origins of roses, many species come from seasonally dry areas of the world, like Persia! This is why some roses get diseases like powdery or downy mildew when grown back East. Not problems here in our area of low humidity!

Prune Roses

Care for all garden plants in your low water garden (xeriscape) includes proper pruning. There are whole books (and YouTube channels) on pruning roses alone, and how to do it right. You are coming here because you know that the Southwest is a unique place, and I am here to help you succeed with gardening here. So here is the quick guide for roses in the Southwest.

Pruning roses is a matter of getting three things right. The right time, the right amount, and the right place on the plant.  More about the right tool for the job next week.

Right Time

Rule of thumb. Prune 8 weeks before last probable spring freeze in your area. This is called the “Last Frost” date in most gardening books. Mind you, it is only the average last frost date, so use it as a guide. (More on Last Frost).

Low Desert – last frost 15 February. (Yuma, Phoenix). This part of the Southwest barely even has 8 weeks of possible freeze. Prune any day after Winter Solstice and before February 1.

Middle Desert – last frost 15 March to 01 April. (Tucson, Las Vegas). Prune in January to mid-February.

High Desert – last frost 15 April. (Sierra Vista, Carlsbad). Prune in February.

Cool Highlands – last frost 15 May. (Clovis, Safford, Tonopah). Prune in March.

High Mountains – last frost 15 May to 20 June. (Reno, Prescott, Taos). Prune in late March to mid-April.

Right Amount

Your big fat rose bush is going to be reduced to three to six main branches, also called canes. Some varieties will have up to ten canes (see below).  This is a form of rejuvenation pruning.

Start Easy

Start by removing any dead canes. Also remove small twiggy growth.

Remove any canes that are crossing through the middle of the bush or rubbing against other canes.

Now look at your bush and pick out the best canes that remain. Smart carpenters measure twice, and cut once. So do smart pruners!

Measure with your eye from two different directions before you cut. You’ve got to move your body and look at things from both sides!

These main canes are going to be short – around one foot tall. Final height depends on type of rose bush.

Around one foot tall? Yikes! The bush might be three feet tall right now!

The first time you do this is a tad daunting. Yes, you will be cutting a lot off! It’s called rejuvenation pruning. Just pretend you’re a hungry giraffe and chomp down at least one-half of the plant. Because you are a smart giraffe, you will leave enough so that the plant has enough energy to grow lots of sweet flowers to enjoy later.

Final height and number of canes depends on rose type

Type                         Height after Pruning                  Number of Canes

Hybrid Tea               8 to 12 inches                            3 or 4

Grandiflora              up to 18 inches                          up to 6 canes

Floribunda               6 to 12 inches                            up to 10 canes

Miniature                reduce to one-third                     4 to 6 canes
of original height

Right Place

Look for the “eye” of a new bud near the base of the canes you have selected to remain. The bud is usually pinkish on a green stem. Look down in among the thorns.

Select a bud that is the correct height above the ground for the type of rose. This bud should also be on the outside of the cane. Since this bud will grow into a whole new cane, you want the right one. One that will grow outward, opening the shape of the rose bush and letting light into the central portion of the plant.

Cut at a slight diagonal about one-quarter inch above the bud. You are not cutting Punji sticks here. The angle only needs to be enough to help shed rainwater once it’s healed.

Basics

These are the basics to rose pruning. I have tried three years running to get decent video for you guys to watch the action on my YouTube channel. The camera phone on a tripod does not work. I will try again this year, with “the undergardener” holding the camera, so stay tuned!

 

Thank you for reading today.
– Jacqueline

More Pruning Tips – pages of them for each month!

The Month By Month Guide offers tips for your landscape (yes even lawns and roses) in every month of the year.  I have a few copies left and am offering them to you – my loyal readers. When you buy from me you get a signed copy!

From the review:

“A great reference book is key to successful gardening in the region where you live. Arizona, Nevada & New Mexico Month-by-Month Gardening takes the guesswork out of gardening for anyone residing in the Southwest. With this book, you’ll know what to do each month to enjoy a thriving garden all year, from January to December. Chronologically organized, this guide is full of critical gardening when-to and how-to advice, along with illustrated step-by-step instructions.

The book’s author is Jacqueline Soule, a Tucson-based gardening expert. She knows this arid region inside and out, and she’s written several articles and books packed with her gardening advice. Arizona, Nevada & New Mexico Month-by-Month Gardening showcases Soule’s expertise in one easy-to-read guide.”

Profits from the sale of this book go to the Horticulture Therapy non-profit Tierra del Sol Institute.   Recent price increase, due to the US Postal Service price increase in July 2024.  It is now $30.

Legal Notes

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