I know it's hard to do when there are still flowers on them, but you just have to bite the bullet and do it NOW! I'm a bit of a novice with roses and I learnt the hard way that you will end up with a very scraggy,lanky bush if you don't do it properly. Basically just prune about 1/3 or even more off the plant to make it a pleasing and balanced shape....it's really easy on those. Please anyone tell me if I'm wrong on any point, because I am a Learner.
Cheers,
Dee.

Having just pruned some 30 or so roses (only another 150 to go) I have seen that some need to be pruned in the traditional sense of the word, and others just need a trim. One of my David Austin beds needs a particularly good tidy up, so I pruned fairly heavily this year, to allow me access to the bed without damage to my person. The plants were strong enough to take it.
Some (not all) of the new DA's planted last year, only wanted a light tidy up. Others had grown strongly and could be treated differently.
Bonica needed little more thanb a tidy up - including the 2 standards. The 4 Burgundy Icebergs that I am shifting were trimmed back enough to handle, but could easily have been left alone completely.
What I am trying to say is that the old rules of 1/3 or more in late July do not apply to ALL roses. If you regularly cut your blooms, then you are constantly pruning and tidying the plant. If it is still blooming, you don't have to prune. It is NOT compulsory.
You can prune regularly through the year - my DA's get a trim (call it deadheading if you like, but it is a general tidy up) at least three times during bloom season, in between flushes, and to promote the next flush of blooms. This is very effective, but they still seen to put on enough growth to warrant a pruning in late winter. Some plants if kept tidy all year, won't need to be pruned now.
BTW - some roses most certainly don't want be treated to the 1/3 cut back - including Damask and Gallica roses, which will fail to bloom if treated that way.

Thanks for the detailed responses. Now i am confused wether i should prune them. Think I will still though. DO you prune in the same way as a hybrid, ie. like in a vase shape with just the main growing branches left on???

Thxs

OK Guys I am new to roses but I love them Mum started me of and now my girlfriend has got into them

What alaught we had on the weekend we pruned them I hope we did a good job now I have 4 climbers and I just do not know what to do with them I have read on how to prune but I just do not get it,,, If ANYONE in Perth that lives near Joondalup would like to help me it would be great even if you tell me what to do Please and Thankyou

1st time pruner

Thanks for that info Sparaxis. I feel like a real L plater when it comes to roses, so all information is gratefully received.
Navy Blue, I think if you feel they look a little untidy, just do as much as seems to look good. The main thing is, you learn as you go and you won't kill them. Next year you'll probably feel like an expert! Cheers,
Dee.

HI all

Going to prune them tomorrow if the weather is nice.

Do you prune in the same way as a hybrid, ie. like in a vase shape with just the main growing branches left on???

Do floribunda's not drop their leaves, as mine are nice and green but the flowering is close to finishing?

As these roses are only 1 or 2 years old, any special requirements, ie. prune them not as harse as older ones or anything else?

Thanks

Just a few questions still confusing me :

Is it too late to prune now? Would not have thought because we have had some nasty frosts over the last few weeks.

Do you prune in the same way as a hybrid, ie. like in a vase shape with just the main growing branches left on???

Do floribunda's not drop their leaves, as mine are nice and green but the flowering is close to finishing?

As these roses are only 1 or 2 years old, any special requirements, ie. prune them not as harse as older ones or anything else?

Thanks

Hi Navy Blue,
As a rule climbers aren't pruned until they are three years old,so don't worry about them,just remove any dead pieces and tie the stems horizontally along the support.You seem to have young floribundas,prune each according to its vigour,to its natural shape or within reason to the shape you wish,using the guidelines you have for hybrid teas but cutting more lightly.I leave more small stems on my floribundas than on hybrid teas.
Can't help with you with the late frosts problem-I'm frostfree,other than to say risk it and get the feeding and mulching out of the way.Perhaps someone near you might advise.
Hope this helps
Pam.

Take out any dead or unproductive wood. Cut out branches that are congesting the middle part of the bush. Cut everything else to a healthy, outward pointing bud. Bear in mind as you go along, the aesthetics of the bush. As a general rule, if you cut back hard you will get fewer, larger blooms. Roses are very tough, and capable of putting on a lot of growth in a year. Dead head on a regular basis - sort of a minor prune every 6 weeks or so, and you will get heaps of roses, and keep your bushes to a pleasing shape.

Thanks all

Seems like i will give them a trim, but not a hard trim like my hybrids. Just tidy them up.
Thxs all, sorry for all the qstns just that I am new to floribundas.

We are here for the questions,Navy Blue.You're welcome.
Pam.

hi i'm a new member to this site and new to roses i read a lot of question & answer and did not come across one that tell's me when is the right time to prune can anyone help please thank you

Hi ...July is the best time to prune roses down your way..

Hi Mistymorne thanks for that i will wait till july to prune them.
this site is fantastic im spending hours on it one day i will manage to have fantastic roses in my garden thanks again cheers

just want to know when to prune them and how to get good blooms in the summer

Hi Sheila, In Victoria and cooler climates any time from June to August. Bush roses flower on new wood so you encourage new growth by cutting back to a healthy five or seven leaf. Just cut on a light slope with a bud pointing outward. (The new thoughts are you can cut a rose back anywhere and it will still grow, which is also true) I am an old fashioned rose grower so cut back as described above but it is true no matter where you cut them they will make up their own minds where to sprout. As long as you cut off all the old dead wood, weak little shoots, try for about a pencil thickness but I have cut them back up to half inch thick. You MUST cut them back however to encourage the new growth. Climbers are different, they flower on last year's wood so you must leave the branches that have shot this year, they form the new wood to flower on next spring. Mini roswes can be pruned with shears in a good shape.

I have several climbing roses. When should they be pruned?

Many thanks. DT