.when to prune and how to prune?

This is a long article, dinosdj, but it should answer all of your questions and clear up some misconceptions you may have about rose pruning.

https://garden.org/ideas/view/...

zuzu said: This is a long article, dinosdj, but it should answer all of your questions and clear up some misconceptions you may have about rose pruning.

https://garden.org/ideas/view/...

Excellent article, Zuzu. Thanks for posting it. It answered a few of my questions, too.

January is the time to start pruning in San Diego County.

You might want to check into the California Coastal Rose Society which is active in north county SD. There are some great people in that group.

Ooops ! forgot the link

https://www.californiacoastalr...

A good article, but I do have an objection to make: IMO, climbing roses ,once mature,DO need "rejuvenation" pruning; that is, periodically (every few years) it is wise to remove a very old, woody cane that has become less productive. This helps to encourage new basal breaks, so that young, new canes gradually take the place of the old, exhausted ones ,and the plant remains vigorous and vital.

I once took a rose climbing pruning workshop which dealt mainly with old rose varieties, and was shocked to see the nationally well-known rosarian cut out canes until all was left were three canes tied across the top of the trellis. He advised that be done every year, and to cut out older canes, tying in hopefully one or more new long canes from basal shoots. I will never forget that demonstration.

Of course, that is for a mature, healthy, thriving climbing rose. If it's a young modern climbing rose with no new basal shoot canes, and only one or two canes to begin with, you would have to adjust accordingly.

Once cut, how does one manage to actually remove those old canes?

porkpal said: Once cut, how does one manage to actually remove those old canes?

Section by section, if needs be with good bypass pruners and a good pruning saw if needed. After I saw the above demonstration, I did this more or less a climbing Cecile Brunner on a large trellis in the rose garden where I volunteer..

Much more difficult is pruning a climbing rose that's been planted inside of a 4--sided 6 ft. high steel pillar structure. I have three of those to deal with this pruning season in the same garden that I've been putting off for the last couple of years when it comes to cutting out old canes that are still producing side shoots with blooms and sending up wild growth out the top (which I do prune out although it has to be done several times a season with a rose like Mme Alfred Carriere). I watched a climbing rose webinar with the ARS and the consulting rosarian was asked about how the placement of climbing roses with such a pillar, and he said the climbing rose should not be planted within the pillar, but instead next to it with the canes tied around it so pruning is easier to do.

On the other hand, I've read that a lot of modern climbing roses are just giant shrubs...roses with extra long canes. Six of these growing on a trellis fence in the same garden that's about 8 feet high and I prune them down 5-6 feet high, removing wayward canes growing away from the trellis, and usually one of the older canes, removing Dr. Huey suckers that are trying to sneak in there pretending they are planted variety.

I have decided that the dead wood inside my very old and overgrown climbers is structural and should be left as is.

Porkpal, I have one myself at home that fits that description!