Rose bushes are beautiful to look at and can make any garden look attractive. This is one of the reasons as to why people decide to grow rose bushes. Roses and rose bushes require a lot of time and effort in order to keep them maintained.
Maintaining a healthy rose bush is not easy at all. There are so many things to do. One of the things that need to be done regularly is pruning.
Pruning requires a lot of care and can totally ruin your rose bush if it is not done properly. Since a lot of people do not have the level of skill required in order to prune a rose bush, a professional is called in.
If you would still like to give pruning a go, then this article is the one for you. It offers you guidance about how you should be pruning your rose bushes, thus promoting further growth and keeping your rose bushes looking as lovely as ever.
Pruning includes removing damaged flowers, leaves and stems. In order for this to happen, the bush needs to be cut at a specific location at the correct angle in order to promote growth and overall health.
You will need a pair of pruning shears and a very steady hand. Household scissors will not do the job because they are a lot blunter than shears and can damage your rose bush by crushing the stems. You also require a thick pair of gloves to avoid getting injured during the pruning process.
Your pruning shears need to be submerged in a mixture made up of bleach and water in equal parts. The bleach will act as a disinfectant and will kill and microbes on the shears. It will also mean that when you use your shears to prune your rose bush, and microbes that come in contact with the shears will be killed. This means that your freshly cut stems will not be exposed to disease causing bacteria.
You need to start off by getting rid of any loose items that may be in your rose bush. This includes pieces of wood, any rubbish that may have flown into the bush, dead leaves on the surface etc.
All overlapping branches need to be removed because these are going to be the ones that bacteria will attack first. Plant diseases tend to start in the stems or branches.
Any dark green branches that you see should not be removed since these are the ones that you need to keep.
Always cut rose stems at forty five degree angles and ensure that the flower bud faces outwards. This will promote further growth.
Pruning your roses requires skill, time and dedication. You may think that it is too lengthy of a process and you may not be motivated to do it, but you will feel a total sense of accomplishment, paired with pride and happiness when you see the end result.
If you are unsuccessful at pruning your rose bush, you could end up with a ruined rose bush, so do not take the risk. It is always recommended that if you cannot prune your own rosebush that you hire a professional gardener to come and do it on your behalf, since you do not want to risk ruining your rose bush.
Either way, once your rose bush has been pruned, it will look as good as new and will leave your garden looking like something out of a magazine.
