How to Prune Roses: When and Where to Cut

Key takeaways

1. Most roses are pruned in late winter when buds start to swell; ramblers wait until late summer.
2. Cut no more than 5 mm (¼ in) above an outward-facing bud, sloping away from it.
3. Always start by removing dead, diseased, rubbing and crossing stems.
4. Hybrid teas are cut low; floribundas are left longer to keep their mass of flowers.
5. Dead or diseased wood can be removed at any time of year.

When should you prune roses?

How to prune roses depends first on when, and "when" depends on two things most guides skip: which kind of rose you have and which hemisphere you live in. This guide gives the timing for each rose type in both hemispheres in one table, then shows exactly where to cut.

The general rule from the RHS is to prune in late winter, when growth is just resuming. Clemson Extension uses the same signal: prune repeat-flowering roses when the buds begin to swell, which on its own patch ranges from mid-to-late winter on the mild coast to mid-spring in the mountains. Watch the buds rather than the calendar. Cold, inland gardens prune later; mild, frost-free ones prune earlier.

The months are guides for typical temperate climates, based on the RHS seasons for the UK; shift them later in cold areas and earlier in mild ones. Our seasonal plant care calendar explains how the seasons line up across hemispheres.

Where exactly do you cut a rose?

• Just above a bud. The RHS says to cut no more than 5 mm (¼ in) above a bud; Clemson gives the same ¼ in. On a dormant stem, the bud sits just above a leaf scar.
• Sloping away from the bud. Angle the cut down and away so water runs off instead of collecting on the bud.
• To an outward-facing bud for most bushes, so the new shoot grows out and the centre stays open. On sprawling roses, the RHS suggests cutting some stems to inward-facing buds for more upright growth.
• Back to healthy wood. Cut dieback down until you reach healthy white pith.

Use sharp bypass pruners, which cut like scissors; Clemson prefers them to anvil types. Loppers or a pruning saw handle thick, old stems. Clemson also suggests dipping blades in a 70% alcohol solution from time to time so you do not carry disease from plant to plant.

How do you prune hybrid tea and floribunda roses?

1. Clear out the bad wood first. The RHS starts with dead, diseased, rubbing and crossing stems, and spindly ones too.
2. Open the centre. On crowded bushes, remove some old stems completely so air moves freely through the plant.
3. Shorten hybrid teas hard. The RHS cuts the strongest remaining shoots back to four to six buds, 10–15 cm (4–6 in) from the base, and weaker shoots to two to four buds, 5–10 cm (2–4 in) from the base.
4. Leave floribundas longer. The RHS cuts their strongest shoots to within 25–30 cm (10–12 in) of the soil and prunes weaker shoots harder, which keeps the mass of flowers floribundas are grown for.

Sources differ on how hard to go. Clemson's approach for large, cut-flower blooms is to keep only three to five of the healthiest canes and cut them to 38–46 cm (15–18 in) above the ground, then reduce height by about a third in late autumn. Both work; harder pruning gives fewer, larger flowers.

How do you prune climbing and rambling roses?

Climbers and ramblers look similar but are pruned at different times, so identify yours first. Ramblers usually flower once, in early summer; most climbers repeat.

• Climbers: in winter, after flowering, the RHS cuts flowered side shoots back by two-thirds of their length and ties in new shoots to fill the support. If the plant is congested, cut a few of the oldest branches out at the base. Clemson suggests keeping five to seven strong canes.
• Ramblers: in late summer, after the flowers and hips, the RHS removes about one stem in three, the oldest, at ground level, then shortens side shoots by about two-thirds. An overgrown rambler can be renovated any time from late autumn to late winter.

If you inherited a rose and do not know what it is, the RHS gives a safe default for late winter: on a bush or shrub, remove one or two old stems at ground level and shorten the rest by a third to a half.

What about new roses, suckers and deadheading?

• Newly planted roses: except climbing and shrub roses, the RHS prunes them hard to encourage vigorous shoots.
• Suckers: shoots from the rootstock below the graft should be traced back to the root and pulled away, not cut at soil level.
• Deadheading: through the flowering season, remove faded flowers on repeat-flowering roses with the same kind of cut, just above a strong bud or leaf. This stops hips forming and keeps the flowers coming.
• Disease: cut out dead, diseased or damaged wood on any rose as soon as you see it, whatever the season. For leaf spots and pests, start with the least-toxic options in our natural pest prevention guide, and follow the label on any product you use.

Clemson also recommends sealing cuts thicker than a pencil with nail polish or wood glue where cane borers are a problem; the RHS does not mention this, so treat it as a regional precaution.

How do you renew an old, woody rose?

Established roses slowly fill with old wood that flowers less each year. The RHS advice is to cut out poorly flowering old stems and to saw away old stubs that have failed to produce new shoots, because these dead ends only collect disease. Take out one or two of the oldest stems at the base each year rather than all at once, so the plant always has younger wood to flower on. Before you start, put on thick gloves, step back and look at the whole shape, and decide which stems stay; then remove the rest from the base upwards. Finish by clearing the prunings and fallen leaves from under the plant.

Make it a yearly habit

Rose pruning is easiest when you do a little at the right time each year instead of a hard rescue every few years. A pruning reminder in Flori, set for late winter in your hemisphere, takes care of the timing, and if a stem shows spots or dieback you are unsure about, Dr. Flori can look at a photo and suggest what to cut. More step-by-step guides are in our care guides.

Flori editorial team

Written and fact-checked by the Flori team. Every guide cites horticultural sources such as the RHS, university extension services and the ASPCA, and is updated when the advice changes.

General plant care information. Plants vary; when a plant is valuable or a problem spreads quickly, consult a local nursery or plant specialist.