skip to main content

Best Time to Prune Blushing Knock-Out Rose Bush?

15 years ago

What is the best time to prune a knock-out rose bush and how far down can I cut it? When I purchased this blushing knock-out in the Spring from Home Depot, it was a bag rose and I had my doubts about how well it would actually do. To my surprise, the rose bush took off and started to bloom not too long after I purchased it and it's still blooming on October 9th! It's getting pretty big, something I didn't expect, and I'd like to cut it down some and shape it a little better, can anyone tell me how I should do this and when?

Many thanks!

Linda

Comments (5)

mad_gallica (z5 Eastern NY)
15 years ago
Next spring.

Regular Knock Out, which is the only one I'm familiar with, seems to canker very easily. Last year I was pruning 3 separate sets of them, and they all had noticable damage at the old leaf nodes. It may have had something to do with a mild winter, but that only means this one is going to get hit hard no matter what the weather does. So pretty much the only thing to do is wait until spring, and see what has to be pruned out.
aprilscott12
15 years ago
Hi Linda...I usually prune mine hard in February.I'm in zone 7 so I don't know if it would be the same in your zone or not. I know from experience that ko's are very hardy and easy to grow. I love them for their non stop color in my landscape. Hope that helps some.
April
Related Discussions
Miniature white lights on my Knock-Out Rose bushes ?
Q
Comments (5)
I agree, but wonder if the potentially difficult pruning resulting from the wires being concealed by the plant growth would be worth the hassle? I deal with a weeping cherry that has such lights wrapped through it. The effect is quite pretty when lit and it hasn't hurt the tree at all, but maintenance is a real pig, trying not to cut through all those wires when I have to remove errant growth. Kim
...See More
Best time to move a rose bush
Q
Comments (7)
Instead of moving the root ball, I just try to move the large roots, carefully digging them out of the soil. A plastic plastic shovel avoids damaging them. I just moved a Carefree Delight--instead of moving an 16" root ball, I moved lots of 2 foot roots, for a root system four feet in diameter. Last year I moved a large Rose de Rescht--it didn't miss a beat. The CD is around the practical limit to what I can move--it took three hours to dig it out of the ground.
...See More
Q. re: Knock Out rose - my 1st rose
Q
Comments (9)
A grouping does look good. I'd plant them into the garden now so the roots can get established. Even the hardiest roses can die the first winter if the roots have not had an opportunity to grow into the surrounding soil. August is a really hot dry time to transplant a potted rose. Unless you water regularly and deep you could lose them especially if the soil falls from the roots when you transplant. Nature size and planting distance is determined by your growing zone. Pruning can be easy. After each flush of bloom, allow the flowers to fade some. Use a pair of hedge clippers and remove the dead blooms along with a inch or so of cane to shape the bush. In a few weeks new buds will form along with new growth. You'll have more flowers within a month. Yearly pruning should be done in spring. Remove winter killed canes and dieback along with any damaged ones. Cut back as far as you want to shape the bush and keep it in bounds. As much as many rosarians complain about Knock Out being the only roses available in many garden centers, their ease of growing and hardiness encourages many to grow roses again. The desire to grow roses soon entices them to try other varieties.
...See More
Nanho Blue Butterfly Bushes & Sunny Knock Out Rose
Q
Comments (8)
You sound like me when I first planted my BB and KO's last summer! lol. I have around 7 KO's and 1 BB. When I received my BB bush last Spring it said to keep it in the pot until Fall, and to plant it in the ground before a frost. And that's what I did and now the plant is several feet tall and wide! The KOs really do need as much sun as you can give them. Mine get sun from morning to night but I think they'll do well in 5-6 hours of sun. This is a new bed we built this year, so excuse the messiness of it, we'll make it better looking next summer. It's near our barbed wire fence and on the other side are weeds from a small pasture area. The red knockout on the left we planted last year, and it doubled in size this year. The other KOs were planted this year. The yellow Rose is the one that's just now starting to bloom. I have the other KO's in my other flowerbed. And they love water! Butterfly bush which is just now starting to bloom. Looking down the fence line.
...See More
roseman
15 years ago
You should shape up the Knockout family of roses, but since they are shrubs, they should not be pruned as you would a hybrid tea. Cut them back one-third is need be, but only shape up shrubs, but do not prune.
Terry Crawford
15 years ago
Linda, I'm in Zone 5 here in Illinois and I grow several Knockouts. What I routinely do is prune off all the dead growth in April.

Some years, depending on the winter, there won't be as much winter damage as other years, so I'll be left with a bigger shrub after I prune. However, this past April, I had to prune quite a bit of dead wood off and they were pretty small. But trust me, it doesn't take them long to rebound and start growing again. Mine are all huge beasts now again.
larryhill_fuse_net
13 years ago
I am actually trying to get a handle on how low to prune if I want my knockouts to eventually be about 4 fet tall. Can anyone help? I just cut them back to about three feet but my hunch is that from here they'll go crazy. Two feet seems so smlll compared to where I am starting from. This will be their third year. Last summer they got to be about 5 feet and that is larger than what I want right now. The first year they were in they grew pretty slowly and last year I pruned in early April to about 2 feet and they grew to about 5 feet. Should i go back to 2 feet if i want an outcome of 4 or should I go to three feet and then cut back in the summer if they are larger than I want?

Sign Up to Comment

Related Stories

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Knock Out Roses

By J. Peterson Garden Design

As glorious as their high-maintenance kin for a fraction of the work, Knock Out roses make even beginners look like garden stars

WINTER GARDENING Pruning Secrets for Exquisite Roses

By Annie Thornton

Encourage gorgeous blooms year after year with this time-tested advice on how to prune your rosebush in winter for health and shape

GARDENING GUIDES What Kind of Roses Should You Grow?

By Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Want to add the beauty of roses to your garden? Find out which ones, from old-fashioned to modern, are right for you

GARDENING GUIDES 6 Wonderfully Easy Roses for Any Gardener

By J. Peterson Garden Design

Look like an expert even if you're just starting out, with these low-maintenance gems of the rose world

GARDENING GUIDES Great Native Plant: California Flannel Bush

By Annie Thornton

Forget watering once this bush is established. But the yellow burst in spring and summer, you'll remember

GARDENING GUIDES 5 Sweet to Spirited Pink Roses for an Enchanting Garden

By J. Peterson Garden Design

Whether you go demure or daring, there's a pink rose here to make you flush with garden pride

GARDENING GUIDES Roses: Crowning Touch of Gardens

Whether you're the Miss or Mister America of gardening or take a hands-off approach, roses can be a winning addition to your landscape

GARDENING GUIDES 5 Favorite Yellow Roses for a Joyful Garden

By J. Peterson Garden Design

Make 'cheery' the name of your garden game when you order your roses sunny side up

GARDENING GUIDES Learn the Secret to Bigger and Better Roses

By Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Grow beautiful roses using both ordinary and unusual soil amendments

LANDSCAPE DESIGN Make Your Roses Even More Beautiful With These Companion Plants

By J. Peterson Garden Design

Nourish your rosebushes and create a visual feast with these 7 classic and unexpected plant pairings

Sponsored

More Discussions

Anyone get their plants from Grace Rose Farm yet?

36

Leap into Spring with Us - Seasonal Thread

301

Thrips,,, never saw one till about three years ago now I’m infested!

5

OT--Your White Whales

44

Did my shrub make a baby?

3