hi, i recently purchased 2 blue girl, tropicana, peace, and double delight roses (bare root from local garden store). I planted them outside as soon as possible as instructions told me, there was some new growth growing on the tips at the date i purchased. later, about a week after i planted them we got a large frost, and all of the new growth was dead, WILL THEY COME OUT OF THIS OR ARE THEY DEAD??? THANKS
Here you have to watch out for roses having been displayed for sale in a sheltered--even indoor--area that have grown tender new shoots prematurely. This is not limited to box stores, drug stores or other such places--at least two major independent nurseries I visit present their newly potted roses in greenhouses, where they soon make growths that are more advanced and less hardened then they would do outside. I don't understand how this works or why this is done.
I can tell you why they do it, because people buy them, do people appreciate hard grown plants, NO! *shakes head* its those profit hungry supermarkets/superstores, always treading on our toes, do i sell baked beans, no.......enough before blood pressure gets too high. Tell you what Takana, take them back, and demand a refund :)
Was the ground frozen too? How deep were they planted? Were the bud unions (swollen part where the canes arise from the root stoc) below or above ground level? If the soil was not frozen, don't worry, new shoots should emerge in due course once the weather warms up a bit more. As mentioned by Ron, the new shoots are not hardened off or acclimatised to cold temperatures. But as long as the canes are viable, they should have the full potential for sprouting new shoots.
Apparently you are in USDA zone 5, where early March was too early for these hybrid teas to put on growth. You can gently remove that new growth with your fingers. At the node on the cane, where the leaf or new cane attaches, there are two additional buds. If they are all frozen, then definitely take the bushes back for an exchange. If there is die-back on the canes, just prune down to apple green wood. In our climate out here, with the exception of Peace, those particular hybrid teas are quite prone to black spot. Watering from below, adequate ventilation, and removing affected leaves helps tackle this. Check with your local consulting rosarians if this is problem in your drier climate. You may want to discuss winter protection issues as well, e.g. not feeding later than August, planting the bud union deep enough, etc. You are in the Illinois/Indiana District, and they will be happy to take your questions. See: http://www.ars.org/About_ARS/about_the_ars.htm, where consulting rosarians are listed by state, and local societies are listed by district, and they have consulting rosarians as well.
