How to Cut Dead Roses From a Rose Bush

Cutting dead or spent blooms from a rose bush, or deadheading, is done to improve the appearance and shape of an existing rose bush and increase the number of future blooms. Also, removing old rose blooms prevents destructive insects from invading the dead plant material and spreading into a healthy plant. Deadheading can be done after a bloom period on rose bushes that bloom once or twice a year or during the bloom period on ever-blooming roses as individual blooms fade.

Things You'll Need

• Sharp pruning shears
• Garden gloves
• Rose bush with spent blooms

Instructions

1. Locate spent blooms on rose bush. Some blooms may have already fallen apart, leaving the rose hip or seed pod which needs to be removed as soon as possible. Leaving rose hips on the bush will decrease the overall number and quality of blooms during the next bloom period.

2. Look at the area below the spent flower to find where to cut. Look for a cluster of leaves or a leaf with five leaflets growing out of an outward-facing bud and cut at a 45-degree angle about one-quarter inch above the bud. This will produce vigorous new growth in the direction the bud is facing. This pruning technique is most effective on rose bushes that bloom several times during the season and must be done as often as possible for best results.

3. Collect cuttings and remove from garden. Old plant material can harbor insects or fungal diseases.

Tips & Warnings

• Prune rose bushes that bloom once a year to shape after the blooming period in the spring. This is the only time you will cut a spring blooming variety, so drastic pruning is okay. Pruning later may interfere with the plant's capacity to bloom on new wood. Always prune to an outward facing bud or leaf to prevent inward growth that decreases air circulation and interferes with sunlight reaching inside growth.

References

• deadheading and summer or fall pruning
• fertilizing, pruning and winterizing roses
• demystifying the rose pruning process