There are certain garden tasks that need to be done every year. Soil needs to be provided with nutrients, mulch needs replacing, irrigation needs checking, and as anyone with roses will tell you, those bushes need to be pruned. Roses are definitely high-maintenance superstars of the garden, with their lush foliage and striking flowers. Each year, they need to be pruned in order to increase in size, produce more blooms, be more full and balanced, and have better health overall. Most roses need to be pruned just once a year, thankfully, and the time to do it is just around the corner. In wintertime, between the months of December and February, roses are dormant, meaning that they are not putting on growth, they are not flowering or fruiting, and they typically do not need much ongoing care. This is the perfect time to prune.

You'll need gloves, preferably ones that go a bit up your forearm. Roses have prickles, which can tear through both clothing and skin, and it's best to protect yourself in advance. Depending on the size of your rosebush, you'll need either some regular pruning shears or long-handled lopping shears (or both!). A smaller-size saw may be handy as well, if a larger renovation is going to be completed on the shrub at this time. Make sure all tools are clean and sharpened before use. Using dull blades to cut through branches and stems can leave jagged, uneven cuts that catch moisture, and may lead to fungal problems later on. Clean tools are necessary to prevent the spread of pests and disease between plants.

Canes that are crossing (especially those that are touching) should be remedied by the removal of one. If there are any canes that are very thin (thinner than the girth of a pencil), they can be removed as well. Next, move towards the bottom of the plant and remove any debris covering the base. Search for any suckers, which are extra-vigorous shoots that arise from the rootstock of your rose variety. Make sure to cut these all the way back down to where they connect with the trunk.

Now is the time you get to start making some decisions about your rosebush. Choose between 3 and 6 strong, healthy canes towards the outside of the plant. Trim these back so that there are just 3-5 buds on each cane. These will be the canes that put on the most growth when spring rolls around, and they will form the general shape of the shrub going forward. Finally, remove all leaves from the bush. Diseases and insects tend to overwinter in the leaves, so this helps to prevent any issues in the coming season.

Rambler roses have pendulous canes and can also be great groundcover-type roses. They produce canes that can reach up to 10-15 feet long in just one season, and produce the best flowers and foliage on old wood. This coming year's greatest blooms will come from last year's growth. Prune these immediately after they are done flowering, removing some of the older large canes and giving it a general trim for shape and size.

And there you have it! Remember to clean your tools after you're done, and replace any mulch around the base of your roses that may have gotten shuffled around during the pruning process. If there is still some frosty weather to be had in your area before springtime rolls around, make sure to protect your newly-pruned roses and any new growth they may send out in response. 

There are many things that backyard gardeners can do over the winter months to prepare themselves for the growing season ahead, one of them being cleaning out seed storage areas. It's important to check for seed viability at this time of the year, because although we are not quite ready to plant our seeds yet, we do need to know if we can use the seeds we have or if we will need to order more. This is the time of year when seed catalogs come out; a good reminder to check our stock. In general, most vegetable and flower seeds will last around a year, though this shelf life can be extended to as much as 10 years if proper procedures are followed. The three most important factors in storing seeds are moisture, temperature, and light. Seeds like to hang out in a purgatory that is cool, dry, and dark. This cuts down the chances that seeds will mold, sprout, or otherwise go bad. Seeds also will fade in germination rates with time; if a packet of seeds was purchased a few years ago and went unused, it's possible that the seeds inside are now out of the window of viability.

This seed viability test takes between 7 and 10 days to complete, and begins with a moist paper towel, laid flat. Place a row of 10 seeds on the paper towel along one edge, and roll up loosely, making sure the seeds stay in place. Next, place the damp paper towel in a sealable plastic bag or other container (like a clear Tupperware) and put it in a spot that receives bright, indirect light and is warm. Many home gardeners choose the top of their refrigerator for this purpose, as it stays around 70 degrees. Over the next week or so, check the bag periodically for moisture. If the towel is beginning to dry out, add moisture by spraying with a spray bottle and resealing the bag. At the end of the 7-10 days, remove the paper towel from the bag and check to see how many seeds have sprouted. Some seeds may need longer to germinate, make sure to check your seed packets or online sources to confirm how many days your specific seeds will need for this process.

The general rule of thumb is if less than 7 out of the 10 seeds tested have sprouted, then you're going to want to order more seeds of that variety for planting this year. If between 70% and 90% of the seeds have sprouted, you should be good to get them in the ground once the weather warms up (or start them indoors). Many people will toss the germination test seeds, but they can also be planted in flats if they are carefully handled, and grown indoors until the last frost of the year has passed.

If you're like many home gardeners, you'll have a good amount of non-viable seeds. This happens, and doesn't necessarily mean that they were stored improperly or that any part of the process was done incorrectly. Sometimes seeds just don't make it if they're not in their natural habitat. The silver lining is that there are many seed companies online, or you can visit a local seed library.

For more information on seeds, take a look at the Seed module of our Home Gardening Course:

Happy testing, and feel free to comment below about the effectiveness of your seed storage techniques and results of your viability testing this year; We grow together!