A few years ago we almost pulled all the rosebushes out. They felt like a high maintenaince, bug attracting, thorny nuisance of a flower. So I cut dozens of roses for a final farewell bouquet and piled them into a huge vase. That was a mistake. Even a disheveled arrangement of the queen of flowers has a regal bearing and demands respect. And she got it. Rather than take them out, we did an about-face and expanded our stock.
Fortunately rose breeders have been busy producing hardier roses every year so they are less maintainance now. They have yet to develop the rose that does not require pruning though, and it's pruning time here. After the quick annual review of pruning rules, we gear up with clippers, loppers and saws. I always start out tentatively because it seems like cutting off the recommended amount will kill the plant. But by the time I'm halfway through I'm working with the zeal of an axe murderer, leaving almost nothing in my wake. It's always amazing to see summer's roses emerge from the barren, stubby aftermath of pruning.
