The Simple Gardening Task That Will Keep Roses Blooming In The Fall

Fall is rolling in, the air is crisp, and garden beds are starting to trade their summer vibrancy for muted autumn tones. Roses refuse to bow out. They do, however, demand a little extra attention if you want them to keep blooming well into the cooler months. For many gardeners, this is the moment when uncertainty sets in. How do you coax these stubborn beauties into putting on a last spectacular performance before winter? It turns out that there's a surprisingly simple and completely doable trick. All you need is a pair of pruning shears. The key to keeping many of the stunning roses you should grow in your garden blooming in the fall boils down to deadheading. Yes, that's it.

At its core, deadheading is about removing spent flowers from your rose bushes. This tiny intervention tells the plant to stop wasting energy on old blooms and redirect its resources toward producing fresh buds. For the best results, you must learn how and when to deadhead roses. Ideally, you continue the practice through the growing season and stop once the cold weather sets in. This helps the plant settle into winter dormancy. By committing to this unfussy task, you can extend your roses' flowering time and savor the joy of fall blooms.

To get more blooms from your roses this fall, you'll need a sharp pair of hand pruners. Clean the snips thoroughly with rubbing or isopropyl alcohol to avoid spreading harmful pathogens between plants. Next, identify the type of rose you're working with. For bush roses, follow the five-leaflet rule. Look just below the bloom and you'll see a couple of leaves with three leaflets. Keep going down the stem until you see the leaves with five leaflets. It's usually best to cut just above the first five-leaflet set. That part of the stem has enough strength to grow into a healthy flower.

Climbing roses are a bit more flexible. Find the primary stem, then either cut to the five-leaflet mark or 12 to 14 inches. It really depends on how long of a flower stem you want. For cluster-flowered roses, trim well below the cluster, again about ¼ inch above the five-leaflet point. While deadheading, try not to cut off too many healthy leaves. After all, the leaves are a plant's energy factory. They convert sunlight into the fuel the plant needs to create gorgeous blooms. Once you've finished, feed your roses with a balanced fertilizer and scatter some mulch. Together, they replenish nutrients, repel weeds, and maintain soil temperature and moisture, giving your autumn roses one last chance to shine before you taper off feeding for the winter.