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So I was looking at all the rose places that have sales in Sept. and got an idea. I have 4 huge plastic pots on my patio that I grow annuals in. I was thinking of growing roses in them. Now my problem is that I know container grown roses are more susceptible to winter damage than roses in the ground, but I don't have an unheated garage/basement. So the container roses would have to sit out in my yard all winter. ( Also, I am too puny to lug a huge container around to put it in a garage type place).
Would they survive if I specifically purchased varities that are hardy to zone 4 or even zone 3? I dare not try HTs and such, but maybe some smaller sized OGRs/Bucks?
What do you think? I saw on your page for Mme Isaac Perriere that you (Moyesii) grow it in a whisky barrel that overwinters outdoors. Do you do anything special? Does the rose bounce back well in Spring?
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Hi! I'm still learning about overwintering potted roses, and haven't found the perfect solution yet. Basically any rose that I keep potted over the winter is one that I'm prepared to lose.
In the past I've either stored my potted roses in our three-season porch or buried them with their pots in the ground. The porch was a bad idea, because it gets very hot during the day and cold during the night. Some of the roses never went dormant, and I've lost quite a few roses this way. I've had better results by simply burying my potted roses in the ground in the fall. I might lose 1 or 2 roses with this method, but I prefer it because it's convenient and gives me good results for the little amount of effort involved. But this winter I'm going to try storing a few of my potted roses in the tool shed, which is probably similar to keeping them in an unheated garage, which I don't have.
I don't do anything special to overwinter the Mme Isaac Pereire that I grow in the whiskey barrel. The first and maybe second winter I wrapped some burlap and straw around the canes, but I'm not sure if that really helped. It has come through 3 winters without any dieback, but we haven't had a very cold winter recently. I think the whiskey barrel also offers better insulation than other containers, because of the wood and the size.
I would definitely stick with the OGRs and other hardy roses for your pots, because even if you bury the roses in the ground this fall and transplant them to your larger containers in the spring, next year you'll still have to find a way to overwinter them. But how large are the containers, and is the plastic going to be very durable?
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Thanks for your reply- it was very helpful. The containers are of some really hard plastic- they have been on my patio for the past 3 yrs without a single crack! I grow annuals in them each year, I know they r very durable. The size is quite large. The depth of the container is probably 2 ft so I can accomodate a nice-sized rose in there.
I have a toolshed too- quite tiny, unfortunately. If i can find cheap casters or dollies to move the containers, I may try your tool shed storage idea as well.
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