Now is the best time to prune your roses. Come learn how to prune and watch a certified rosarian demonstrate pruning at a free Napa County Master Gardener workshop on Saturday, January 10. Call 707-253-4221 to reserve a space at the morning session (10:30 a.m. to noon) or afternoon session (2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.). Both will take place at the University of California Cooperative Extension Office at 1710 Soscol Avenue in Napa.

In the meantime, here are some guidelines for do-it-yourselfers.

Before making the first cut, gather, clean and sharpen your pruning tools. Use a sand block or soapy water and a scour pad to remove rust and plant sap from all surfaces. Use a sharpening stone or a diamond sharpener to get a good edge on all cutting blades.

You will need scissor-type pruning shears that fit your hand comfortably, loppers to cut canes larger than one-half inch in diameter, a hand saw for thick old canes, plus leather gloves, protective clothing, a ladder and a tarp.

Observe the rose bush you are about to prune. Are there dead or diseased areas? Has it gotten too big or stayed too small? Did it produce many flowers?

Pruning in the winter regenerates the plant for next season’s growth. It focuses the plant’s energy into the strongest canes and branches. First, remove all dead, damaged and diseased wood and most crossing branches. Cut close to the nearest cane or to the main graft union but without damaging the new buds at the pruning site.

To shape hybrid tea roses, floribundas, grandifloras, miniatures and most shrub roses, remove only about one third of the growth (or less if your bush is very young and tender). Removing more may rob the plant of stored energy for growth and bloom.

Cut all branches straight across at a right angle about one-quarter to one-half inch above a bud eye. You do not need to dip your pruners in disinfectant after each cut, but cleaning the blades with soapy water and a scour pad between bushes is a good idea. Do not use glue or any other substance to seal pruning cuts. The cuts will heal themselves.

For climbing roses, let the terminal shoots grow for three years, training and tying them onto your fence or trellis. To encourage abundant flowering, prune back the lateral canes, leaving three to five bud eyes. You may want to remove one or two old canes every year to encourage renewal in the plant.

If you have old garden roses that bloom once in the spring or early summer, wait until after they bloom to shape the bushes. Reduce the branches by no more than one third, and only that much if they threaten to overtake their allotted space.

Remove any sources of potential disease and pest infestation in your garden. Once your rose bushes are pruned, strip them of all remaining leaves, spent flowers and hips. Clean up all debris under and around the bushes and put it in a recycling bin or take to the dump. Do not compost rose cuttings.

Some rosarians spray their pruned roses and surrounding soil with a dormant oil combined with a copper-based fungicide. The spray will kill over-wintering fungus spores and insect eggs. Consult your local nursery for product information and follow label instructions exactly. Generally, cleanliness will be enough to keep your garden healthy without spraying.

Observe your roses as they begin producing new growth. Look for suckers coming from below the graft, and cut them out before they take energy from the flowering branches. You can “finger prune,” or rub off, new growth that is heading in the wrong direction or where multiple buds are producing competing branches at the same node. Shape your bush throughout the growing season as you spot branches that need to be shortened or removed.

Each garden occupies a unique microclimate. Use your judgment and experienced eye to determine how to prune. Do you prefer long-stemmed roses with one big flower, or a spray of small flowers? Do you want to renovate an old bush or train a new bush? Prune accordingly. The rose bush will forgive most mistakes.

Master Gardeners are volunteers who help the University of California reach the gardening public with home gardening information. Napa County Master Gardeners are available to answer gardening questions in person or by phone, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 9 a.m. to Noon, at the U. C. Cooperative Extension office, 1710 Soscol Avenue, Suite 4, Napa, 707-253-4221, or from outside City of Napa toll-free at 877-279-3065. Or e-mail your garden questions by following the guidelines on our web site. Click on Napa, then on Have Garden Questions?