Darren Garrison asks:

...Any reason I should expect these sizable, apparently healthy plants to NOT
do better than the ones I have on order from a nursery for 2-3 times the price?

Yes. The old adage "you get what you pay for" applies. First off, you're
not getting the same grade on grafted or budded roses. You're getting grade
1 1/2 (sometimes generously applied,) which means "we cannot sell this rose
ourselves as grade 1 - let's ship it to Wal-Mart and let them sell it."
They might even be selling roses from a big name nursery everyone
recognizes and trusts, but only because that nursery doesn't want to sell
the inferior grade directly. Grade 1 1/2 isn't a poor rose, but it's not as
healthy and vigorous as a grade 1.

There's also the lack of any responsibility on the part of the seller.
Wal-Mart is not concerned about its reputation when it sells you a rose.
There's no guarantee. If your rose has been mislabeled, or you discover
mosaic patterns on the leaves, you're pretty much stuck with what you've
bought. You *might* be able to return the rose if it's in the original pot
with all the labels attached, you have the receipt and too much time hasn't
passed. Not a very likely set of circumstances.

You should also go back a week or so after these chain stores first receive
their roses in spring and notice the rampant spread of disease. They don't
hire people who know how to care for roses. They simply overhead water them
every day and the roses are usually crammed together, creating a most
welcoming environment for fungal spores. I'd almost guarantee your rose
came home with a fungal disease, even if you didn't see symptoms when it
was purchased.

When you pay a little more to buy roses directly from a reputable nursery,
you get grade 1. Most guarantee the rose to be virus-free. They manage
their plants to keep them free of pests and disease. If your rose succumbs
the first season, most will replace it at no cost to you and they will not
require return. If you are still not satisfied, you have recourse in the
form of public forums (i.e. Garden Watchdog.) These places care about their
reputations. Not too many people will stop shopping at Wal-Mart because
your Tropicana turned out to be Brilliant Pink Iceberg and Wal-Mart knows
this.

Of course, you may luck out and your rose will be fine. It's a gamble. That
rose may only be $6.00 or $7.00, but you have to dig the hole, plant it,
mulch it, feed it, water it, etc. You've got more than just a few bucks
invested in it's success.

Mike