Yes, I'd wait until they have begun to actively grow. If the leaf buds/nodes have not begun to fatten up and grow it's a little early yet. If they are already starting to grow then go ahead and prune them. There is no sure rule for it because it's a very climate specific thing and there are a lot micro climates that can influence things. For me spring comes a little later than elsewhere here even though I'm in zone 6. I'm right on the lake and that big expanse of water was frozen all winter and takes time to warm up. The cold wind coming off the water keeps my yard cooler than places even a few miles inland from me in the spring. However, in the fall it takes a long time for that water to cool down again so I'm warmer than inland and will have roses blooming sometimes into November. You have to learn how your area works and go with the right time for you. I don't just start at 1/3 of the way down. Sometimes they're still healthy much higher than that and I like to leave mine with as much good cane to start out with as possible. In our cold zones we lose a lot as it is. Start at the top of each cane and cut off about 2 inches. Look at the center of the cane. Is it White/green or tan/brown? White/green is live cane. Tan /brown is dead wood. Keep cutting down about 2 inches at a time just above an outward facing leaf bud until you get to cane that has a clear, clean white/green center. From there down you should be good. But also check down the sides of the canes for dark streaks or damage. If the cane has been damaged further down chances are it will die back to below that damage anyway so you might as well take it off.

I'm in a similar growing zone and have 300 shrub roses. Many are green to the tips and require only tip pruning. Others, I remove the dead wood as far as needed to reach good wood. If that requires pruning to a few inches, that's what I have to do. Explorers and hybrid rugosas are pruned to shape and keep in bounds. Depending on the amount of room they have and how I want them to look, determines how much I prune. If I had the one pictured. I'd shape it with a pair of hedge clippers then go back and remove any dead or damaged wood. In our area, the 1/3 method is not necessarily the best method. I think that's good in warm growing areas where there is little dieback. The rabbits got a few of mine too, I clean those up and by late May or early June, mine are all blooming. Some of the shorter pruned bushes take longer to reach their usual size but I have time!

You are quite welcome In reality, almost any rose can be pruned as a shrub. There is a great DVD you may want to purchase that explains how to prune a rose as a shrub. I have it and have learned a lot from it, plus it has some great pictures of mature roses from the Mottisfont Abby in England, manny which have been pruned as shrubs for years. The DVD is "Pruning Shrub Roses and The Glory of Mottisfont" and can be purchased from Ashdown Roses (ashdownroses.com). But be prepaired, you may get bitten by the rose bug and want even more. :).

I have a friend who is an excellent gardener and she is a big believer in pruning almost every plant. I have started pruning back alot of things, even cutting blooms off annuals I buy - this takes the stress out of blooming and the plants can make roots - then bloom. It works great. I have Knockouts, including the yellows which I love. I do prune them back and they just keep blooming. It neatens them up - I also disbud regularly. Dont give up on your roses. They are wonderful with the perennials you describe. Buy a Belinda's Dream if you can find one - totally disease free and blooms constantly. Find some composted manure [I raise horses so have lots], put on alfalfa pellets, cottonseed meal, use Miracle Gro and fish emulsion fertilizer........I have a Graham Thomas rose that has frustrated me with no blooms. A rose nursery told me to fertilize it with Carl Pool BR-61 - sure enough, it started blooming. Dont whack your roses back too much, maybe a third. Keep them watered then watch the new growth come on. It is amazing what roses will do when fertilized. I once read - roses are hogs - feed em. Roses make such a lovely addition to other annuals and perennials - I will bet with some pruning, watering and fertilizing, you will see good results. Be sure and water before you fertilize. Good luck! Judith