Cindi ...
I have held off writing this because I know you are an experienced rosarian and do believe there are a lot of right ways to grow roses, so what you have learned from the roses in your garden may be somewhat different from what I have learned growing roses in this garden.
From day one, I recognized that I was creating a rose garden in poor soil and would need to compensate for that. One of the decisions I made was never to plant any rose in the ground until it had a fully developed root system. Over time, I have become more and more convinced that this decision has had more do to with the success of having vigorous plants throughout the garden than anything else I have done to care for the plants over the years. In my garden it is the high temps of summer that cause the most stress for my roses.
I now believe that a plant with a good root system can handle the stresses Nature throws to the plant better than a plant that is developing the root system. In the long run, I think it makes for a stronger plant as it continues to mature.
A bare root plant has good anchor roots, but does not have the small feeder roots to supply both moisture and nutrients to the plant. It takes time for those roots to grow and start working to support the plant. More than a few weeks.
Last year I purchased a bare root rose in December and potted it up and over wintered it outside. We did have a warmer winter than usual, but I did have a plan to keep the pot from freezing, if the temps dropped to where the container might freeze.
I could have planted the rose out in spring, but chose to keep it in its container to allow the plant to develop more roots. We had a very hot summer and we do not get any rain in the summer months. The smoke from the fires this summer also created problems for all of the plants not only in my garden, but throughout the county.
When I planted that rose into the ground near the first of October, I didn't expect the heat spike that brought the day temps back up to the high 90s for a few weeks.
In early October, when I planted the rose in the ground, the plant had developed a full root system with feeder roots, so it was able to withstand the high temps with no problems. There was NO transplant shock and the rose behaved as if it had always been in the ground. I didn't even have to worry about watering it daily as is recommended for newly planted bare root roses. That rose was ready to go. The rose HAD grown roots to the point where it was almost at the point of going root bound.
If I could not have planted it this fall, I am certain it would have done fine until I could plant it.
With your November arrivals, based upon my experience, I would suggest you pot them up and let them grow their feeder roots and plant them out next fall. With your spring arrivals, I suggest you pot them up and carry them through the summer until next fall. Waiting until the rose grows a well developed root system seems to give it a leg up and gives it the ability to withstand stress better.
I was trained to observe plants differently than most people and see the roses and their performance differently. To me, I may no longer be a novice in the rose world I play in, but I am certainly not in the league of those who are far ahead of me in their knowledge of roses. There is always more to learn.
It's something to think about.
