>>>Is this a matter of taste, or something specific to KO Roses, or would you say they're wrong?
I think it was for all of them to keep the mites from over-wintering in the canes. I have always cut mine back in winter but I only have the KO's now and I have not been doing them but I think I should just encase some mites get in there, don't you think that is a good idea? It's about disease control.
>>>I thought that pruning should usually be done while plants were dormant.)
Me too, I always pruned them in the winter when they were dormant. But when I got the KO roses I heard they did not need to be deadheaded or pruned. I have never pruned them except for when I needed to move one, I figured the less thorns the better.
I will prune them this winter just for disease control, to prevent mites from over-wintering. I do not want to, to me it is a set back for the shrub. (KO) It will not bloom as good in the spring, maybe that is why Steve Hutton discouraged it.
