Depends... (I just can't help myself!!!)

I have a few that need staking every year, Sheer Bliss, Lagerfeld (not HT but Grandiflora is same to me), Leana. Others I never have to stake like Moonstone and Pink Peace. Tiffany will need staking or cutting down. But, I also notice that it depends on how hard I prune them in the spring. If I give them a hard pruning (down to 18" tall) then I usually don't have to stake, because the new canes are very strong and can handle more top growth. If I leave them taller, the new canes are growing on older canes that might not be able to handle substantial new top growth.

Well, Diane, I didn't prune very hard in the Spring. I was excited about having little winter damage so they were quite tall to start out with. I guess this was a mistake?

What would you recommend after the first flush, then? I usually only prune down to the 1st 5 leaflet. Would you prune much lower to allow the canes to get stronger?

Debbie, I don't grow that many but the ones I do have can stand on their own. It's others I have problems with drooping.

Carla

I lost a nice FAT year old Salet cane just covered with buds, from wind damage this week. I made two nice starts from it.

We have been having some severe storms.

Generally we do not stake HTs. The only HT we (at our weed patch) tie to a rebar support is the McCartney rose. It may be just it's location or I didn't get it planted deep enough. As I remember the roots were massive. Some HTs get pretty big!

The canes may be softer this time of year when the rose canes are actively growing with all the rain we have had, and all the fish guts and stuff I have given to the beasties. I agree the weight of the spring flush some roses bear is impressive.

Foghorn

Here is a link that might be useful: McCartney Rose

We have lots of wind here (as in the song "where the winds come sweeping 'cross the plain), and because of that I try and get roses on the shorter side. Mr. Lincoln was one that grew so tall (8 feet) that it was wind rocked to death. Trying to alter his basic tall nature by pruning him down low in the spring didn't help. Our growing season is long enough that by the end of it, he had regrown back to his towering height. As far as pruning back, the new cane will be slightly smaller then the cane you've pruned back to. So if the cane you prune back to is thin, your new growth will be even thiner.

If these are own root roses just going into their second year, then the canes will need staking until they grow some "big boy" canes ie: larger canes that have hardened off. At that point you can cut the twiggier growth off. That is a pretty common occurrence with own root roses. I don't think I have had a grafted rose flop over from the weight of the blooms other than after a bad wind or rain storm. At least not that I can remember.

Carol

Redsox,
Your zone 6 situation may be similar to mine. As the roses matured, I have had less winter die back. It seems to me that a "typical" HT can survive a "typical" zone 6 winter and harden into a tree. With bark. This is something I wouldn't have believed 5 years ago.

I have learned that cutting away good cane is a fact of life each spring. At the same time the new canes are getting stronger. The roses still end up 6-8' tall, but the blooms are held high.

Like so many other rose questions, patience is part of the answer.

Actually they are all grafted onto Dr Huey. So, what should I have done in early Spring? Cut down to 18 or 24 inches? What should I do now to prune after flush?

It is not unusual for southerners who grow roses on R. Fortuniana to stake them. The hybrid teas in some gardens will reach 10 ft. Now, I would never allow that because I think hybrid teas should be kept pruned to a reasonable height, but then that's just me and we did prune some down to 12 inches this year, not just HTs.

Redsox,
If your soil is naturally acid like most of the south and east, I would add a few inches of amendments and mulch each spring to encourage your HT's to develop their own roots. I don't think they will reach their full potential with Dr. Huey doing all the work.

As your plants mature, cutting them back to 18" will not slow them down at all. Here, it seems to encourage them. My roses have become extremely vigorous and hardy with these methods.

The hardest part may be those first few years when the rose seems to be sulking and its difficult to decide to act or let it develop roots on its own. There seems to be a time that the rose "decides" to grow up. I have absolutely no skills in determining the science in this schedule. But, sooner or later, the rose gets hardier, less disease prone, produces more blooms and grows stronger canes that don't flop.

Debbie, I didn't do my normal pruning at all this year. Sheer Bliss is almost 10' tall, no kidding. Tiffany, Honey Dijon, Leana and Marchesa Boccella are all in need of staking. All will come down maybe by half after the first flush is over. I love this year's flush, but it is a bit much.

Oh, and I totally agree with what Harry said. My Lagerfeld is a lot, um, sturdier since I started using Mills Magic Mix or Espoma Rose-tone or Holly-tone, the organics and the alfalfa have really helped.