The way you cut your roses can affect the health of your roses. Taking long stems with the flowers, weakens the plants because of the loss of foliage. The general rule to follow when removing roses is to cut just above the first leaf with five leaflets. New plants are especially sensitive to leaf loss, so take only short stems along with the blooms during the first year.

Early morning or evening .is the best time to remove your rose blossoms. At that time of day, the stems and petals are full of water. Select flowers with petals that are just starting to unfold. They'll last much longer indoors.

It is important to use a sharp tool to cut the stem so you won't damage the lower part of the stem and encourage diseases. There should be at least two leaves on the stems below the cut. New shoots will grow from buds, located at the point where the leaf and stem join. It is also a good idea to remove old wilted flowers. This keeps them from producing seed, which takes food away from the plant and weakens it.

After you have cut your roses, let them stand in room temperature water for several hours before arranging them for display. To make the roses last longer indoors, you can add a cut flower preservative to the water in the vase. Don't carelessly remove thorns and leaves from cut blooms. Peeling or tearing back the skin interferes with water uptake to the petals.

This page was last updated May 2003

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