Now.

@Sheila z8a Rogue Valley OR do you prune your roses? I've been admiring the large, graceful shape all of your roses seem to have.

Now is good. I should be doing mine but I have so many other things Im catching up on. Hopefully I can get to it next week.

I really don't prune Librarian, but if one wanted to, in Florida, now would be the time.

Here, it would also be the time and in all warm areas but you are right that I prefer natural shapes.

I'm learning a lot this year. This forum is so wonderful! Thank you. I was reading (on Oregon State University's extension site) that now is a good time to start in my zone too. My modern roses are all so new (less than one year) that I'm going to wait it out this year but I might have something to prune next year. It's fun that pruning roses would be the first garden task of the new garden year.

The only thing I might add is that you should take out all dead wood if you see it. Leaving the rest to let the plant mature and form a natural shape is good but dead wood is an invitation to disease and insects.