Have you noticed? The early blooming bulbs are poking through the ground. It’s not spring yet, but the plants are whispering about it. It stopped raining for a few hours and the sun broke through the clouds, so I decided to get outside and take stock of the garden. First order of business: trim the roses.
Here’s an easy how to: http://gardening.about.com/od/rose1/a/RosePruning.htm
If you own a house in Portland, chances are you have a rosebush somewhere on your property. (Portland originally encouraged it’s residents to plant roses in commemoration of the 1905 Lewis and Clark Centennial celebration-it was dubbed the City of Roses in the 20’s.)
Roses are not the most forgiving plant, but give them some TLC and they’ll thrive (and your house will look like a proper Portland house). February is the best time to trim your roses, right before bud break- so get to it. Oh, and you should probably fertilize them too.