Should rose bushes be cut back after they quit blooming in the fall?

Answer 1

You do not mention what type of roses you are talking about. The requirements are different for all types: tea, floribunda & grandiflora, ramblers, climbers, miniatures. Check the site below for a set of simple instructions for each type as to when and how to properly prune them. Early spring seems to be pruning time for them, but dead-heading is necessary in the fall, as mentioned before.

Hope you have great luck with your roses -- I've found that these instructions work well on mine (tea) & love them!

Answer 2

I start to answer your question with one of my own. What do you mean by "cutting back"?

After the flowers fade, you should cut off the spent flower (dead head). Cut the flower stem back to where the stem is about the thickness of a pencil, just above a leaf. The thicker the stem, the larger the flower (or more flowers if it's a floribunda or similar). Whimpy stems beget whimpy flowers. I would advice a dab of elmers glue on the newly cut stems to prevent 'rose borer' from entering the plant.

In the spring, when the Forsythia shrubs are in bloom, that's when I cut back my roses for the season. (I live in Michigan, use a visual indicator that's appropriate for your area, one that is the earliest shrub to bloom in your climate). First remove all the dead wood from the plant and diseased branches. After that, try to remove any branches that cross one another (this is more important for Hybrid Teas, Grandifloras and floribundas, less so for old fashioned roses and shrub roses). Once those two parts are done, go back one more time and reduce the length of the branches until they are the thickness of your thumb or there-about. Again, these thicker stems will produce bigger flowers. Even out the bush, so that you don't have any stems that give it an "irregular" look.

Lastly, elmers glue to seal your cuts. Very very important. Rose borer can be deadly, and .99c worth of glue can be a life saver.

As for the fall part of your question. No. Just dead-heading through out the growing season.


Good luck!

Answer 3

Yes. I usually take the dead heads off during the summer, but leave them on until the back end of winter. Once the frosts have finished I dead head them and then prune them down to the new buds. Leaving the old growth on them, during the winter helps to protect the new growth.

Answer 4

No. They'll survive the winter better if you wait until spring to prune them.

Answer 5

I always cut mine back it helps them to spread and keeps them healthy