: Is it late enough in the year yet to prune back my roses? They are
: very old, poorly looked after bushes with loads of gnarly old growth
: (about 8 feet high in places!!) and I'm planning on hacking them back
: to about 1 foot long stems. Should I hold off till the weather gets
: colder and wetter or go ahead now?
:
:
:
: a

I would go ahead now. November is the normal time here but we're almost
there


I'm not sure why you'd want to prune roses just yet. The idea behind waiting
till late in the year to prune roses and other plants is to allow them
(deciduous plants at least) to withdraw nutrients from the leaves and relocate
those nutrients in their roots and stems over winter for use next spring. As
we're still experiencing some extremely mild weather, and may do so for some
time to come, cutting back roses now will probably stimulate new growth, if
anything. Something you're surely not wanting to do right now?

I'd hold off 'til the roses have dropped their leaves, then prune back to
within a few buds from the base of the plant. Wait 'til spring and for the
worst of the frosts to have past, then prune back to as low down as you can
(leaving enough buds to ensure good growth for your roses). This will ensure a
maximum reduction in height (which seems to be what you're after specifically)
while still ensuring that your rose survives.

I hope this helps and makes sense.

Dave.