The objective here is to reinvigorate the plant and develop a good shape. Quite a challenge and very obvious if you get it wrong and have a lop-sided plant!
One trick is to dead-head regularly and trim any wayward growths at the same time. This will maintain a more tidy habit and improve the look of the bush.
In the first couple of years after planting, prune only to remove dead or diseased wood, and any branches that cross and therefore are damaged by rubbing. Check the stake for rotting and the ties in case they have become too tight.
Always remove suckers from the base of the plant and the stem, cutting them away cleanly at their base. Then prune as for a bush rose, cutting back hard to keep the 'bush' standard. If the bush is lop-sided, then prune harder on the smaller side to encourage more vigorous growth.
R. 'Charming Bells', a lovely weeping standard, but regular pruning is needed to maintain a good shape.
Weeping Standard Roses
Weeping standards need a slightly different treatment. They are basically a rambler budded onto a stick.
Leave new growth that is soft and supple. Keep the branches as open as possible, removing dead, diseased and any branches that rub.
Always think of the shape of the bush when cutting out any wood. As for other roses, the once-flowering varieties (which flower on the last seasons growth) should be pruned after they have flowered, allowing them to develop new flowering stems for the following season. Repeat flowering weeping standards need only a light trim in autumn and a more severe cutting back in winter.
(Centifolias, Alba, Moss, Damasks & Once-flowering Modern Shrubs) These roses all flower on the previous years growth and thus need any pruning to be carried out immediately after flowering. Pruning should be done with a light hand and to encourage an arching habit.
Prune by cutting off faded and dead flower clusters.
In winter or late spring you can cut back very long shoots to about two-thirds of their length, and cut back lateral shoots that flowered the previous season to two or three buds. Cut weak and spindly growths to the base.
In their second year, long canes can be cut back by a little, to reduce the risk of damage from wind-rock, in late summer or autumn.
R. 'Celesiana' is one of the loveliest Damask roses, very fragrant and old, bred prior to 1750
Shrub Roses II
(Portland, China, Hybrid Perpetual, Bourbon & Modern Shrub Roses)
Repeat flowering shrub roses are often considered to be better for an annual, light prune. The technique is as above: a post-flowering summer prune, done with a light hand, to remove faded and dead flowers.
A light, late-winter prune can also be carried out, removing one or two canes that come from the base of the rose. Those canes left this year can be pruned out next or subsequent years, to continually rejuvenate the plant and keep it young.
