Question
Hi Ms. Payne, I live in Zone 6. Connectuicut.  I have have a Basye Purple Rose that has grown to over seven feet in four years.  Most of the blooms are at the top.  Yet when I attempt to prune it back into hard wood, the pruned branches often die.  I believe I use good clean pruning practices.  Do you have any suggestions on how I can control this rose.  Thanks and best regards, David

Answer
Most roses (like people) are programmed to grow  a certain way, such as upright and tall or medium and spreading etc. If they have a lot of vigour, no amount of cutting back will keep it the way you want it to grow. However some roses actually resent hard pruning and will re-act by dying back. But it can also be the way you prune the canes. A short lesson on rose canes. Rose canes have what is called bud eyes and these are where the new growth will come from. It is there that the rose has the most vigour. So to make sure your cuts heal quickly, you always cut about half an inch above the node. The rose then rushes a hormone to clean and seal the cut. Now if you cut say 2 inches above the node, the rose hasn't the strength to push the hormone up as far as that cut. What happens is the rose only partial seals off the cane and canker sets in. These are bacteria which live off the canes insides and kill them slowly moving down the whole cane and infected it. It is called dieback but the real name is rose canker. These are a couple of reasons your rose canes are dying. It depends on how much you like the rose but you could bit the bullet and cut it right back in the spring to 6 inches. Because it is a vigorous bush I am sure it would start up again for you. Then because you know what it does, you could now keep it under control. You prune in the spring for vigorous new growth and you prune in August to keep a rose down. Hope this helps.