How to plant and prune roses in winter – the complete Australian guide for a spectacular spring display

There is something quietly satisfying about working in the garden in winter when most things have shut down for the season. The air is crisp, the beds are bare and everything is waiting. And of all the winter garden jobs, few pay off as visibly or as reliably as getting your roses right.

Winter is rose season. Not the showy, Instagram-friendly season of perfumed blooms and abundant colour – that comes later. This is the working season, the one that determines how spectacular everything will be in spring. Plant a new rose well in July and by October you will have flowers. Prune an established rose correctly now and it will reward you with vigorous new growth within weeks.

Neither job is complicated. But both are worth understanding properly.

When to plant and prune Australian roses

May, June and July are the months to plant bare-rooted roses in Australia. July is the ideal time to prune roses in most areas, but in very cold zones – especially those subject to late frosts – leave your pruning until the end of winter.

The general rule: the best time to prune roses in Australia is late June through July. The goal is to prune after the risk of frost has passed but before new growth begins. If you are in a frost-prone area such as the ACT, alpine Victoria or the New England tablelands, wait until you are confident the worst frosts are behind you. New growth that emerges too early and gets cut back by frost is not a disaster – the rose will recover – but it does set the plant back several weeks.

How to plant bare-root roses: step by step

Roses are sold in winter as bare-root plants – stripped of their soil, sometimes with a minimal amount of packing material around their roots, looking for all the world like a cluster of thorny sticks. Do not be deceived. These unpromising bundles will produce some of the most beautiful flowers in your garden within a few months.

When growing roses, it is important to prepare the planting spot at least three weeks beforehand. They like good drainage, so if you have heavy soil, consider building a raised bed or mounding the soil. If clay is present, mix gypsum into the topsoil and avoid digging into the deeper clay layer as this will create a water-holding sump.

Dig a hole 60cm wide and 30cm deep, leaving a small pyramid of soil at the bottom. Place the rose on the soil pyramid, spreading the roots down the sides. Ensure the soil mark on the stem aligns with the level of the garden bed.

On planting day, unwrap the bare-root rose and place it immediately into a bucket of water so the roots do not dry out. Disentangle the roots gently and spread them evenly over the soil mound in the base of the hole. Backfill halfway with soil, water well and allow to drain, then fill the rest of the hole and firm down gently to eliminate air pockets. Water again with a gentle shower spray.

Do not add fertiliser at planting time – the rose is dormant and cannot use it. Wait until you see signs of new leaf growth in spring before applying rose fertiliser and a layer of mulch.

Roses need at least four to six hours of sunlight daily. In terms of position, full sun is non-negotiable – a rose in deep shade will survive but will never thrive.

How to water newly planted roses

Water newly planted roses at least twice a week, regardless of the weather, unless conditions are flooded. The root system of a bare-root rose is minimal at planting time and needs consistent moisture to establish. Do not rely on rainfall alone during the first weeks.

How to prune established bush and shrub roses

The reason roses are pruned in winter is straightforward. Roses bear their flowers on their new growth. By decreasing the size of the rose, the plant has fewer eyes that require sap flow in spring. This results in stronger stem production and therefore more flowers.

The aim of winter pruning is to remove about half to two-thirds of last season’s growth to encourage new growth, as this will produce flowers in spring and summer.

Here is the step-by-step method:

Step 1 — Start with clean, sharp secateurs. Sharp, disinfected secateurs are essential. Blunt tools crush rather than cut, which damages the stem and invites disease. Pruning does not harm the rose — you will not kill it by pruning too hard – so do not stress about getting it perfect.

Step 2 — Cut the bush back by roughly half. Make each cut just above a plump outward-facing bud, at a slight angle sloping away from the bud. Outward-facing buds produce growth that opens the centre of the plant to airflow, which reduces disease.

Step 3 — Remove dead, diseased and spindly growth. Cut any dead canes right back to the base. Remove weak or twiggy stems and any canes crossing through the centre of the plant.

Step 4 — Aim for a cup shape. Ultimately, you want the rose bush to resemble a cup shape, with the outer canes reduced to one-third to half of their original height, cut to 1cm above an outwardly facing bud.

Step 5 — Spray after pruning. After pruning, spray the bare plant with lime sulphur or pest oil to eliminate fungal spores and pest eggs, giving you a fresh start come spring. This is especially important for rose gardens that have trouble with black spot and mildew during the growing season. Bin all prunings — do not compost them.

Climbing roses: a different approach

Climbing roses follow different rules and it is important to know which type you have.

For climbing roses, identify the main canes – these are the plant’s permanent structure. Do not cut these unless they are damaged or completely unproductive. Look for lateral side shoots that grow off those main canes and trim these back to about two to three buds from their base. These shoots are where most of the flowers will form in spring and summer.

Roses that only flower once in spring – including the popular banksia rose and many old-fashioned heritage varieties – should not be pruned in winter. Pruning them now will remove the growth they need to flower. Instead, prune these varieties after their spring flowering has finished. For these roses, only remove dead and very old twiggy wood in winter, and keep any trimming very light.

One of the best ways to get more flowers from climbing roses is to train the canes horizontally. Use soft ties to secure them along a fence, wall or pergola beam. Horizontal training tricks the plant into producing more flowering side shoots along the length of each cane.

The one tool worth investing in

If there is one upgrade worth making to your rose-pruning setup, it is a quality pair of bypass secateurs. Felco secateurs are the standard recommendation among serious rosarians for good reason – they cut cleanly, they last decades and replacement parts are available. For climbing roses with thicker canes, a pair of long-handled loppers is also useful.

What to do in spring when new growth appears

Once you see the first signs of new leaf growth – typically August or September depending on your climate – it is time to apply a rose-specific fertiliser and top the bed with a layer of mulch to retain moisture and suppress weeds. Feed at end of winter as new growth appears, apply mulch and watch for aphids, thrips and mildew early in the season.

The reward for a well-planted, well-pruned rose comes quickly. Within weeks of the first new growth appearing, flower buds will begin to form. By October in most parts of Australia, you will have exactly what you were working toward in the cold of July.