In article , JennyC
writes
I personally prune them in late autumn just to tidy them up a bit for
the winter. I remove dead wood and cut back the stems to about half of
what they were. Then I prune them back even more in spring when they
are just about to start growing again. This has the advantage of
looking neat over the winter and any frost damage that might occur can
be removed in spring.

Yes, I do this too, despite the fact that many experts advise against
it. The expert thinking is that autumn pruning will stimulate frost-
tender growth. In the same way, oldtimers will never feed after the
middle of August. I say pshaw, and have never lost a plant to frost.
But it's down to climate - I'm in Oxford, btw.

David Austin's English roses in particular IMHO need autumn tidying - I
probably take a third rather than a half - and a further trim in March.
Same for hybrid musks, bourbons and HTs and floribundas, plus any
repeating climbers.
--
Jane Lumley