If you enjoyed all of the beautiful colors and scents your roses provided during the summer, it’s your turn to protect them from winter winds and freezing temperatures which can damage or kill the plant. Whether you have climbing, bush, or hybrid roses, some winter protection especially in USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 6 and lower or microclimates with subzero temperatures will help ensure your roses return to beauty next spring and summer.

Understanding the Timing

Timing is important in everything including winter protection of roses. Don’t jump too quickly but depending on the winter temperatures where you live, protection should usually be provided by early December.

Allow roses to go dormant naturally. As the weather cools, often in October, stop cutting blooms and let rose hips form. If you want to dry rose petals, give blooms a slight twist before they turn brown. Collect and discard fallen leaves that show signs of black spot, rust, or powdery mildew. These fungal diseases can overwinter as spores and wreak havoc next spring.

Don’t prune too early. Pruning while temperatures are moderate can signal the rose to produce new, tender canes susceptible to winter damage. Wait until mid-November to remove dead or diseased canes and reduce the overall size of the rose plant. Final winterization steps (mulching, mounding soil, wrapping) should be done after your area has experienced several days of below-freezing temperatures.

Selecting Roses That Winter Well

If you live in an area with severe winter temperatures, it’s a good idea to choose hardy rose varieties like old garden, shrub, and landscape roses. Old garden roses can be climbing, trailing, or bushy shrubs. While they can benefit from winter protection, they are more likely to survive subzero temperatures.

Less hardy roses include hybrid tea, English, polyantha, floribunda, grandiflora, miniature, and some climbing roses. These varieties are more sensitive to diseases and winter damage and should always receive winterization. All roses grown in containers should receive winter protection to prevent damage.

3 Methods of Winter Protection

Mounding Soil

Mounded soil is an effective insulator against winter weather and works well with all roses. Garden or bagged soil is mounded around the base of the rose to protect the roots and crown of the plant. Rack back mulch in a 12-inch diameter circle around the base of the plant. Add enough soil from the garden or potting soil so it is mounded over the plant to a height of about 6 to 8 inches around the canes. If using bagged soil, be sure it does not contain fertilizer.

Rose Cones or Huts

Rose cones can be metal frames with removable vinyl covers or huts formed from Styrofoam. The cones provide additional protection around small rose bushes and tea roses when mounding soil or mulch. To use a rose cone:

• Remove dead and diseased canes. You may need to prune larger canes so the rose cone will fit over the plant.
• Rake back leaves and mulch around the rose.
• Slip the rose cone or hut over the plant.
• Fill with garden soil or mulch to a depth of about 6 to 8 inches.
• Weigh down the cone or hut with bricks or heavy stones to ensure stability.
• Be sure there is ventilation along the top of the cone so air can circulate. Punch holes in the sides of Styrofoam huts or vinyl covers if needed.

Alternative Insulation Materials

While soil is the recommended choice for mounding or filling a rose cone, some gardeners use lightweight mulch like leaves or straw. Mulch may be sufficient protection in more temperate growing areas but you also run the risk of rodents using the filler as a winter nest. Not only will you have a surprise greeting in the spring, critters may decide to gnaw on your rose.

For rose growers in warmer growing zones where heavy winterization is not required, use burlap and twine to wrap roses for the occasional blast of winter weather.

Step-by-Step Guide to Winterizing Roses

1. Beginning in October, allow the rose to go dormant.
2. In mid-November, prune the rose to remove dead and diseased canes. If using rose cones or huts, additional pruning may be necessary so the cone will fit. Remove climbing roses from trellises and lay the canes flat.
3. Rake away and dispose of fallen leaves. Clean away mulch to create a clear area about 12 inches in diameter around the base of the rose.
4. Mound soil around the base of the plant covering the roots and crown to a depth of 6 to 8 inches. For climbing roses, after covering the crown, cover the canes with 3 to 4 inches of soil.
5. If using a rose cone, put it in place before adding soil. Secure the cone to ensure stability.

Additional Tips for Successful Winterization

• To overwinter a container-grown rose, dig a hole the depth of the pot in a protected garden location in early November. Place the container in the hole and fill around the pot with soil. After the ground freezes, add 8 to 10 inches of soil over the rose.
• Most bushy old roses do not require winterization; however, if they have no protection from winter winds, you may want to add protection. In mid to late November, place a cylinder made from chicken or hog wire around the plant. Fill it with 3 to 4 feet of straw or pine straw.
• Remove all types of rose winterization in mid-March before the plants break dormancy but after harsh winter temperatures have passed.