Help with pruning question please

Posts

• Plantminded Posts: 3,580

  March 2023

  I’d prune them back to create a more balanced, robust framework to support future stems and flowers.

  Wirral. Sandy, free draining soil.
  
  
  

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• --Duncan-- Posts: 19

  March 2023

  thanks Plantminded! I forgot to say they're shrub roses in case that makes a difference.

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• Plantminded Posts: 3,580

  March 2023 edited March 2023

  No, that doesn’t matter at this early stage.  You can be quite tough on them, they will soon produce new shoot buds, followed later by flowering buds. Yours are modern repeat flowering shrub roses, older shrub roses need to be left to flower on old wood.

  Wirral. Sandy, free draining soil.
  
  
  

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• --Duncan-- Posts: 19

  March 2023

  Plantminded said:

  No, that doesn’t matter at this early stage.  You can be quite tough on them, they will soon produce new shoot buds, followed later by flowering buds. Yours are modern repeat flowering shrub roses, older shrub roses need to be left to flower on old wood.

  fantastic many thanks

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• Busy-Lizzie Posts: 24,043

  March 2023

  You can prune modern shrub roses to a third of their height, but if they produce tall stems like those there is no problem cutting them down to the height of the others. If they do it next summer, when you dead head you can cut the tall ones back down.

  Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.

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• --Duncan-- Posts: 19

  March 2023

  Busy-Lizzie said:

  You can prune modern shrub roses to a third of their height, but if they produce tall stems like those there is no problem cutting them down to the height of the others. If they do it next summer, when you dead head you can cut the tall ones back down.

  thanks! will cut them back this morning
  

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• Marlorena Posts: 8,705

  March 2023

  It depends what you want from your roses, but I like to see them as large shrubs, and in the case of these particular 2, neither needs hard pruning, as they will develop their own characters and bulk out, without any help from us..  in fact I found 'TAM' to resent hard pruning and it sulked for some time and ruined the rose for me.
  'Kew Gardens' grows angular at first, as you can see, but the lower parts in the centre soon catch up.
  
  I think they look best as big bulky shrubs that rarely see the secateurs except for deadheading and some light pruning, Spring and again at midsummer. A generic style of pruning - one size fits all - doesn't always suit these types of roses in my experience..
  
  'Kew Gardens'.. 3rd Spring, the centre has caught up with the outer parts.. 
  
  ..about 8 x 8 feet in this picture.. which is how I liked to see it.. minimal pruning.
  
  
  
  'The Ancient Mariner' left to grow into a 6 x 6' shrub..
  
  ..at this size, some staking may be required if heavy rain.. but hard pruning results in a short dumpy plant..
  
  
  
  
  ..good luck with your roses, and do what you think is best for your purposes.. 
  
  

  East Anglia, England

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• WAMS Posts: 1,960

  March 2023 edited March 2023

  Incredible photos showing off some of the possibilities, @Marlorena- much better than David Austin's own photos do in my opinion. 
  
  And is it @Mr. Vine Eye who grows Kew Gardens as an actual climber? It is impressive what can be done with them 

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• Marlorena Posts: 8,705

  March 2023

  @WAMS
  ..thank you !.. I just like my roses with character I suppose..  yes Mr Vine has it too, doing very well, quite large I think..

  East Anglia, England

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• owd potter Posts: 979

  March 2023

  ^^^
  I may have to rethink how I use my Kew Gardens

  Just another day at the plant...

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