WHEN TO PRUNE
There are varying opinions of the best time to prune your roses… here at Corkhill Bros we opt for late July – early August! This means the roses are still dormant, but the frosty mornings are (hopefully!) coming to an end. Some gardeners choose to prune them earlier in Winter, this is still ok and very common, but in Canberra the frosts will knock back any shoots that form early.
HOW TO PRUNE
STEP 1: GATHER YOUR TOOLS
Before you start, make sure you have good thick gardening gloves, as we all know that although they look lovely, roses are full of thorns! Our Mitchell Depot has a range of gloves available, from the beautiful goatskin range to the long sleeve range to protect your wrists and forearms.
Our Mitchell Depot also stocks a range of secateurs. It is important that your secateurs are clean and sharp so they are able to apply a clean cut to the rose stems.
STEP 2: REMOVE DRY/DEAD BRANCHES
Take a good look at your rose bush. Has it still got leaves or a few flowers? Don’t worry, you can still proceed with the task ahead. Are there any dry or dead branches? If so, cut them all the way to stump level. We do this to encourage new branches that will produce abundant flowers in the spring.
STEP 3: TRIM THE BRANCHES
Trim all the remaining branches up to a third of their original size. Don’t be shy in cutting back as their shoots grow fast and long.
*If you notice any of your bushes have diseases like black spot ensure you clean your tools before trimming the next bush as to not transfer the disease.
STEP 4: COMPOST
At this stage Corkhill Bros’ founder, Brian Corkhill (who has a garden full of roses!) attests to placing a ring of cow manure around the base of the plant, approximately 2-3 inches from the stem. Ensure the cow manure isn’t touching the stem. As time passes and you water your garden the cow manure will slowly seep into the soil providing nutrients to your roses throughout spring!
Now with any luck you will have a beautiful blooming garden in approximately October! Keep an eye out for our rose de-heading post as proper rose care can bring up to 3 blooms per year!
Happy gardening!
