It's very normal in cold climates to have further die back in the spring after the first pruning. Sometimes the cane may look green and healthy so we leave it thinking it's OK. But there has already been some freeze damage to the cells and so it slowly turns dark and dies off and needs to be pruned off. You have lots of healthy looking new growth there so there's no cause for alarm. Your roses will be fine. As for the black spot. Your pruners have nothing to do with it. It's out there, everywhere! In the soil, in the air on the plants, it's there. Whether you clean your pruners between cuts or not if you're in a black spot area you'll have it. Unless you spray religiously. Cleaning the pruners is more for reducing the spread of other transmittable diseases such as gall, canker and rose rosette disease. I used to do it faithfully but it's a total pain in the butt so I don't do it at all now unless I'm cutting something out because it's diseased and I can see it. I haven't noticed any big difference in the occurrence of any problems as a result.

Thanks elk for getting back to me. It actually spread from the top of the canes on a bare root rose, that I had planted about 1 month ago. I just had to keep pruning more and more off the canes.. I have never seen gall or canker even though I have been growing roses for over 10 years, but that does not mean I never had it. I definitely have thrown out roses that didn't make it for one reason or other. The rose had that parafin stuff they cover the bare root roses in. not only did it not stop with pruning it seemed to become elevated on the cane. Then I noticed there was some growth and swelling on the graft. So you might be right. I have shovel pruned the rose into the garbage bin since I didn't want it to go to the composting bin... Washed the stone pot with clorox.. Would throw it away if it had been plastic but was an expensive pot.... so hopefully cleaning it with clorox and letting it sit in the sun for a couple of days will kill what ever fungal infection it was. Thanks for you help

There is a common term "squirrely" and a few years ago I learned where it comes from. This spring also. I have a large Grecian urn as a feature in my new garden under a Black Walnut tree. I watched a squirrely squirrel jump from the urn to my Krossa Regal and back over and over again until my hosta was flattened. It was enjoying itself until I unleashed my German Shorthaired Pointer on it. They love bombing my things with walnuts, but I have never seen them eat a hosta. What they do is when they smell recently disturbed dirt they dig looking for burried nuts so they might uproot newly planted hostas. I wonder if some pressed garlic will discourage this? Les

I grew both Pretty Lady Rose (died this winter), plus Pink Peace. It looks like Pink Peace for me. Pretty Lady Rose has VERY GLOSSY foliage, but Pink Peace has dull & and dark-green foliage like the pic.