Question
Is it too late to prune back knockout roses before the growing season starts? I'm in the Raleigh, NC area.

Answer
There is no exact time that roses have to be pruned. They can even be pruned after they have started to leaf out. Actually many people prefer to do it at that time because then they know where to cut in regards to the bud eyes. With all this weird weather we are having, sometimes it pays to wait until there is no chance of any nasty cold weather snaps. Go ahead and prune now if you want to.