Pruning roses in summer

If you’re new to growing roses, the thought of pruning them can be off-putting, but never fear! Rose expert Michael Marriott shares his uncomplicated rose pruning advice that should banish any anxiety you have about pruning Britain’s best loved plant.

Michael worked at David Austin Roses for 35 years as chief rosarian, and now runs garden tours, writes books and designs gardens.

“I try never to prune after February because the roses are often growing quite significantly by then and pruning off the young growth will waste their energy.

As the shoots get bigger there is a greater risk of breaking them off. Some roses I start pruning as early as December, I’ve even been known to sneak out into the garden during the Christmas holidays as it’s extremely therapeutic and about one of the only jobs you can do at that time of year,” says Michael.

“The traditionalists will still advise to cut on an angle to an outward facing bud, but if that’s confusing, don’t worry, roses are extremely tolerant and no one need be nervous about upsetting them.

I would suggest cutting the stems down by a

when should i cut back my roses uk

when do i cut my roses back uk