July is a great month for planting new roses but is also the time to give your existing roses some attention for a fabulous display of colour and fragrance over the flowering season. July is the best time to prune your roses. In really cold frosty regions, you may need to wait until early August.
The task of rose pruning can be daunting, but roses are very forgiving and will bounce back beautifully. Winter rose pruning is important as it helps to reduce disease, improve air circulation, allows more light in and encourages good, strong, new growth. This allows the plant to put the energy into producing an abundance of beautiful blooms as the flowering time arrives.
These are some simple guidelines to follow.
Once Pruning is complete, give the pruned rose a good spray with a horticultural oil such as All Seasons Oil or Pest Oil, to control pests that are hiding ready for the new growth to appear. Fertilise with a quality organic fertiliser suitable for roses and mulch with a nice thick layer of your garden mulch. It will not be long until the fresh new growth appears, and you will be rewarded with an abundance of beautiful fragrant blooms to delight the senses.