TIL I've been pruning my roses wrong for 3 years - old way vs new way

I used to just chop off dead branches at random times (you know, whenever I remembered to do it). Then my neighbor, who grows prize-winning roses, told me I was cutting at the wrong angle and the wrong time of year - she said early spring is key. Now I use sharp bypass pruners (not anvil ones) and cut at a 45 degree angle just above an outward-facing bud. Has anyone else had a pruning habit they had to completely unlearn?

2 comments

2 Comments

clairem474d ago

Wait, isn't it better to cut at a 30 degree angle (or sometimes 20) so water runs off slower and the wound heals cleaner? I always thought 45 was for certain types of roses only.

julia_carter704d ago

My friend Sarah was doing the same thing. She just hacked at her rose bushes with kitchen scissors for years. Her neighbor finally showed her the right way and now her roses are actually growing again.