Cass wrote:

Regina wrote:

Cut back harder! I know
I need to cut back harder.

I BR'd Pierre de Ronsard and left the canes about 3 feet, and it's
doing fine too. BR'd 2 Westerlands, one cut the canes back to 15
inches, one with canes cut back to 24 inches. All fine.

Fine like strong new basals? (photo?) See, that's what I want, a
little urban renewal.


Now I wait. Grow, GROW
dammit.

So, what will I hack today?

Altissimo. No hackjob, just shaping. It is finally building up
strength on a pillar, in the wind.

Redcoat and Nicole. I'd done the hack job months ago, cleaning out the
hard to get to stuff down low. Now shaping what's left. Betty Prior.
It wasn't too close to Redcoat when I planted it. hmmmm Between them,
there used to be - a path.

I felt good about pruning this year. I hit a few pretty hard, starting
in the fall (because they say not to, in part)

Good reason.

But I do try to thin out the complex messes when they don't have many
leaves.

And I am finding that once that is done, they need less and less time
from me, which then of course fully justifies adding more roses. Here's
a zen question for you - can one aspire to be Mack and not prune?

by removing all the
stuff down low that was in the way of my rake. I've always wanted to
avoid naked canes down low, so I've been afraid the cut that stuff off.
Well, now I know: it grows back.

And it often grows back less twiggy, and much easier to sort through the
next pruning time.

Regina