ed wrote:

wouldn't you know it, my roses are leaved out and it may get as cold as 23
degrees here tonight in piedmont
nc-&*&%%$@##!!$#@@---aaaaaarrrrrrgggggggghhhhhh...

Don't worry, Ed! I have learned over the past several
years thatit takes several days of 20-degree nights
to really hurt them,unless they are really tiny
and/or young. Are these new bareroots? If so, they
still should be mounded with mulchsince our "last
freeze" date is April 15. (I'm in Raleigh.)

The roses I worry the most about in cold snaps
are the very small, young own roots or "bands"
from Heritage and Vintage. Still and all, with
only minimal winter protection (mulch) I have
only lost one rose to cold--the first-year
own root Joyfulness.

One good thing to do is to water your roses
(too late this time!) well before a cold snap
is expected. It's the drying effect of the
cold that harms them.


ed