I have to admit I’m not a big fan of roses. They have icky thorns,  they can get loads of pests/diseases in them, and they take a lot of maintenance. I would much rather a good perennial garden. In my mind peonies have prettier blooms, lavender has a better smell, and no perennial has thorn.

But I’m not going to rip out roses when I come across them either. They do have good qualities as well. On the grounds I’m taking care of this year, I had a row of overgrown, neglected roses. This is what they looked like:

The buds where budding out, so I knew it was time to prune. Not a task I looked forward to. But, surprisingly, I ended up completing it in a little over an hour, and without a single scratch on my arm. That was due to a good, albiet well-worn, pair of leather gloves, and my current favorite gardening tool: telescopic and geared loppers. I can’t believe how useful those pruners are. (In fact, I’ve already knicked the blade and I bought them a week ago. Could be poor craftsmanship, but probably is me cutting  three inch diameter branches with them. Because they slice right through and it is so much easier than getting out the saw. But way bigger than the 1 5/8″ recommended diameter.)

The roses were pruned back a lot. There was a lot of dead wood removed, and I pruned back until there where only a few good canes per rose, and those less than two feet (or so) high. Here they are now:

And I know I should have cleaned up the branches before the after pictures. That’s for another day, and might result in scratches.