I have done both. I actually enjoy pruning every branch to whatever point I desire and the work is just relaxing to me. I once read that at the David Austin gardens they just use a chainsaw or whatever power tool and just go at it so I figured if it was good for them it was good for me too and gave it a try. I honestly can’t tell any difference with either method. I still enjoy the manual method better, but had great results with the hedgetrimmer also.

Heh. The chainsaw was said in 'jest. It was a balmy 40 degree day. Temps are hovering back at 22 today. I have seen some videos from -growers- if not rose sellers showing some techniques on using the hedge or the chainsaw...

Took advantage of the weather and decided to get some of the spring cleanup out of the way. But yes, it is a bit tedious going through each one, cutting it down to reveal it, then deciding where the final cut is, thinning it out, etc. Eh, maybe it's faster if I wore gauntlet gloves as my hands are -dancing around thorns- vs. me being mindful and selective of how I maneuver around the canes.

My neighbor uses a chainsaw, then I sneak over and clean them up

The chainsaw leaves such ragged edges.

Personally. I enjoy prunning and do them in sections and try not to get too overwhelmed with the number of them.

Never tried a power saw on roses. Wish I had a power tool to remove roots sometimes when I need to dig one out. I'd love to have a machine to dig holes, drive mulch around, etc. Cutting up trimmings takes time and sometimes I rent a large trailer so I don't have to. I can toss the big pieces in and then off to the greenwaste.

a1an...Laugh if you will, but a University did a study on pruning techniques and the effect of flower production. 1 was just cut down by half, but carefully each cane. 2 Was according to ARS guidance. 3 Was with a hedge trimmer. All three worked equally well! The problem was the hedge trimmer had the cuttings left in the bush and had lots more disease. So if you are going for blooms....fire up the trimmer, but be prepared for disease............This makes me laugh so much......wondering who funded the study?

I used reinforced leather gloves, 28 inch loppers and hand pruners for all 16 of mine… meticulously. It’s my zen time so I don’t mind so much. However it was some work and cutting back my 8 foot tall Eternal flame and Mr. Lincoln made me wonder if I want that commitment for my planned 50 rose bush garden…. And I did consider getting a chainsaw for next year’s cutback, lol. I think I’ll still go ahead with my original garden plan because I’m so addicted to roses but this year I’m keeping EF and MrL in check. I cut them both back by half in the fall before our Santa Ana winds and they instantly shot back up four more feet!!! Mr. Lincoln threw up several Mew 1 inch plus thick canes this year.

My mentor in roses was a walking encyclopedia of rose knowledge. He said that meticulous pruning: to an outward facing bud, no more than 6 well spaced canes left after pruning for hybrid tea types, no crossing stems, no growth kept less than a pencil in thickness, and all dead growth removed.....all this work, gave the same results by the peak of the first spring flush if the entire bush was just wacked back in 10 seconds time with a hedge trimmer! He said research proved this.

He, himself, was a meticulous pruner, so I fell in line behind him, observing his exceptionally beautiful roses, and still prune meticulously and painstakingly slowly as he did. I am too chicken to experimentally prune with just a hedge trimmer, a tempting, lickity split approach, for fear that it will turn out to be a disaster, contrary to what the 'research,' has supposedly proven. Research is usually conducted by experts, right? Need I say more.

Moses

A couple more notes to add -

I'm glad I did do the early dormant pruning. It was so mild for so long this year....I was planning to do the prune a month later. But we got snow....and I'm glad the pruning was done by luck a week before.. Last year, I had a bit more shortened winter damage canes as the snow load did some pruning against the longer canes as it bent from the snow....

Last year, from my still new to me rose experince of deadheading, I cut back pretty hard after the 2nd flush to control vert , since it seemed like the 2nd flush still come back with 3' canes. Anyhow, this year, I have shorter -main canes- before it had Y branches off on them. Still debating on some longer canes I left on this years prune job, but I may prune below the Y but the canes might be a bit short.

Didn’t Palatine have a video on Facebook w/i the last few years - showing a rose-cutting implement projecting from the side of a tractor, which traveled down the rows, cutting down canes? Or am I conflating this with some other tractor-related activity they videoed and posted (like harvesting or weeding)?

I presume all commercial growers would implement the tractor in one shape or another - whether it be row pruning or row harvesting. Time is $$$

Anyone else gardening in the dead of winter. Took a bag of pine bark, and another bale of peat from the shed. It took about 2 days to de-that in the garage but now that it's workable,I can start work in making up potting mix. Once done, going to dump it in the pots in the elements so it can re-hydrate.

Bring on Spring. Can't wait for warmer days around the corner