Question
Hi Lynnette,
First a few particulars. I am located in Milwaukee WI and planted several roses last summer. I have a couple of "Knockout" shrubs,  two climbers (Joseph's Coat & Blaze), and a couple of minatures.
My question is how much do I prune and when. They seemed to weather the winter fairly well and I had them covered. There is some dying back of some of the stalks, but most seem to be green toward the bottom and I do notice buds appearing.
How much should I prune the Knockouts and minatures and when?
Do I prune the climbers at all?
And of course, when and how much do I feed them.

Thanks.
BB


Answer
Because you live where climbing roses have to go through a very cold winter, I wouldn't prune them as climbers only need cutting to stay in the space where they are planted. Then if you get a very nasty winter the rose can die back and you won't have to start from the ground again. That also applies to your other roses as they are shrubs and only need to have the dead or diseased canes cut out and then pruned back by a third. Don't go by the buds as they can start from the moisture left in the dead canes. Just keep cutting back until the inside of the cane looks like a green apple. Minis need to be cut back by a half and any dead growth taken out.
Again because of your winter cold, never fertilize the roses after the middle of July. Then that gives them time to harden off any new growth so it will go through the winter okay. Use any rose fertilizer and simply sprinkle a good handful around your climbers and  half a hanful on the shrubs. Minis need a tablespoon scattered around the base. Do it now and then around the first week of July. In case you didn't know, Josephs Coat can be grown as a 4 foot shrub. Hope this helps. Lynnette