How To Deadhead Floribunda Roses: Easy Guide!
This easy guide to deadheading Floribunda roses will give you endless rose blooms all summer long!
Floribunda roses, also known as shrub roses, are chock full of gorgeous flowers in spring and early summer. But did you know these beautiful bloomers can produce new flowers all summer long?
All you need to do to make this magic happen is deadhead your floribunda rose bush properly. Doing so will stimulate new growth on the rose bushes all summer long!
Let’s explore the deadheading steps you need to take to ensure you get new roses through the entire growing season! Keep reading for step by step instructions.
What Are Floribuna Roses?
Floribunda roses are a type of shrub rose. These hardy rose bushes feature clusters of flowers with slightly ruffled petals. They are a cross between hybrid tea roses and polyantha roses.
These rose plants are easy to grow and come in many gorgeous colors. They make a great addition to the rose bed and look especially charming in a cottage styled garden.
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What is deadheading?
To deadhead simply means that you remove the spent flowers with a clean pair of pruners. This stimulates the plant (in this case, the rose bush), to produce new flowers.
Floribunda roses are particularly fun to deadhead because they will produce new rose buds all through the flowering season: even up to the first frosts of fall!
Deadheading is a little time intensive, but your efforts will be rewarded with lots of fresh beautiful blooms. The best time to deadhead roses is right after the flower buds have faded.
Yes, this means you may need to deadhead several times throughout the season. It’s a good idea to keep a quality pair of clippers nearby and to check your rose bush when you go out to water your plant. The more you deadhead, the more flowers your bush will produce!
Recommended Deadheading + Pruning Tools
To care for your floribunda rose, you will need quality tools including protective gloves! We recommend these products that you can purchase from Amazon:
- Small quality pruners for deadheading
- Long gloves to keep rose thorns away from hands + arms
- Bypass loppers for pruning in the spring
Always make sure your pruners are clean before you start chopping. This prevents disease.
How To Deadhead Floribunda Roses
Lucky for you, deadheading floribunda roses is very straight forward and easy. We have been pruning this same rose bush for YEARS, so believe us when we say that you really can’t mess it up.
Floribunda roses feature clusters of blooms. To deadhead them, you will remove the entire flower cluster. Follow these easy steps:
- Identify the dead flowers
- Follow the stem down to the first cluster of leaves that features 4-5 sets of leaves
- Use your pruners to cut the spent roses from the rose stem
- Make a clean cut at a 45-degree angle
- Continue working your way around the plant, cutting the spent blooms until there are none left!
Individual blooms in the same cluster do not always wilt at the same time. Some people prefer to cut each single flower as they fade, and then remove the whole cluster at the next set of leaves once it’s done blooming.
We prefer to lop off the whole cluster of flowers at one time. Either way, once you remove the flower cluster the plant will put it’s energy new, larger blooms.
The good news is you can’t really mess up pruning the old flowers from a Floribunda rose bush. These rose flowers are incredibly forgiving and love to bloom- we speak from year’s of experience!
Love roses? Take a tour through the beautiful Portland Rose Garden in our blogpost here.
When To Deadhead
The best time to deadhead your Floribunda rose bush is actually throughout the entire growing season!
Depending on the zone you live in, you may want to start deadheading faded blooms as early as June! In SW Washington, we typically deadhead our rose bushes from late spring into mid fall. This will vary depending on your local climate.
The more you dead head, the more the plant will produce new blooms. The plant’s energy will go into creating new flowers instead of going into seed production.
Simply keep an eye on your rose bush, and as soon as the roses begin to fade you can deadheading.
Learn how to deadhead dahlias for blooms all summer long!
When + How To Prune Floribunda Roses
Deadheading and pruning floribunda roses are NOT the same thing.
Deadheading is the act of removing spent flowers, while pruning is the removal of the stems on the plant, typically done in early spring or late winter, depending on your climate.
Pruning a rose bush means that you remove the old wood, which is done when the plant is dormant.
Pruning a floribunda rose will keep the stems from growing into a tangled mass and help to clean up weak and diseased canes. It will also keep your plant vigorous and healthy, which will allow you to enjoy vibrant flowers for years and years!
Early spring is a good time to prune a floribunda rose. Pruning helps remove unproductive and diseased stems.
Prune roses with a good pair of clean garden shears. First completely remove any damaged or dead canes. Then cut the remaining canes down to about 10-15 inches from ground level.
This hard pruning to the base of the plant will encourage the rose bush to grow strong, healthy canes. A healthy plant will produce beautiful + healthy blooms on the new shoots.
Growing Tips For Floribunda Roses
In addition to regular deadheading, you can nurture your Floribunda rose by making sure it has the right amount of sunlight, air circulation, water and soil. Here are a few quick tips to help you care for your rose bush:
Air Circulation
Give your rose bush plenty of space to ensure good air circulation. This will prevent the spread of disease between plants and help prevent fungal disease such as powdery mildew.
Soil
While rose bushes can adapt to a variety of soils, the best soil is a medium loam: not too sandy and and too heavy with clay. Roses bushes thrive in soil that is rich in organic matter and has good drainage.
The soil pH should be slightly acidic at 6.5. Check the pH level of your soil with a quality meter like this one.
Regular Watering
New Floribunda roses need regular watering in order to establish their roots. Throughout the first season of growth, water your new rose bush 3-4 times a week.
Once established, rose bushes are somewhat drought tolerant. During moderate weather, give your rose bush a deep watering once a week at soil level. During heat spells its a good idea to water to the plant every few days.
Get more tips for watering flowers here.
Full Sun
Floribunda roses thrive in full sun, and the more light they receive the better they will bloom! Make sure your plant is in a location with at least 6 to 8 hours of sunlight.
Roses can also grow in partial shade, but they bloom best with at least 6 hours of morning sunlight. Some afternoon shade can benefit the plant in the heat of the summer months.
Get our complete guide to growing flowers here!
FAQ
Yes, as a general rule of thumb removing dead blooms off of a rose bush is a good idea. It keeps the plant clean and healthy and allows it to produce more blooms!
There are many different types of roses, and all can benefit from being deadheaded. Deadhead roses by locating the first five-leaflet leaf. Then remove the spent flower by making a sharp cut with a clean pair of pruners beneath the leaf set. This will stimulate the plant to grow from this cut, producing more flowers from the new stem.
Most rose bushes will bloom all through summer, up until the first frost in fall! The best way to make a rose bush bloom is to regularly remove the spent blooms. Fertilizing a rose bush can give it the nutrients it needs to keep producing lush blooms all summer long.
Plant a Floribunda rose in fertile, well draining soil in a full sun location. Make sure to water the rose bush regularly until established. From there, give your rose about 1-2 inches of water per week. Deadhead your rose bush regularly during the growing season to keep it blooming. Remove weak canes in early spring and prune the bush about 10 inches from ground level.
Final Thoughts On Deadheading Floribunda Roses
Deadheading Floribunda roses is an easy task that will keep them blooming all summer long! To remove spent rose blossoms, simply locate the first set of 3-5 leaves and make a clean cut on the stem.
When deadheaded regularly, this multi-flowered rose bush will continue to bloom all summer, lighting up your garden designs with gorgeous color!
Deadheading spent blossoms will also keep your plant looking clean and healthy throughout the entire season, and can prevent fungal infections and disease.
Let us know if you have any questions in the comments below. We hope you have a summer bursting with strong flower production and beautiful blooms!
