There may be a better person to answer your question, but I have always just buried the branches! I'll prune off any that look spindly or unhealthy first. I've had really good luck doing this. My roses sometimes die back to the ground, but since they are on their own root, they always grow back from the ground and bloom in no time! I'm not sure which zone you are in, but I really love Winnepeg Parks!

More & more of these hardy roses are being sold own-root, even from Walmart etc. Check that it is actually a grafted plant before you bother digging the 14" hole.

Then yes, bury the canes. I always try to buy roses that either have a relatively long "trunk" above the bud union, or at least don't have two grafts sticking straight out either side. This can make it impossible to bury to the right depth.

Hey, my George Vancouver says own root. Does that mean I just plant it with the soil level with what's in the pot?

I always plant them deep no matter what. It gets cold here so this is my preferred method. I have had good luck so far.
And no I don't prune them. I just bury them.

Shelley

Thanks Sazzyrose. I bought these particular roses from your list and saw your pictures (?), so I'm going to plant them the way you do, too. I hope mine do even half as well as yours =:)

Thanks!

I plant own-root roses a little deeper, maybe 2-3". It wouldn't hurt to go deeper.

I meant I plant own-root roses a little deeper than the soil level. Not deeper than grafted roses. Sun's hot today, I'm not making sense.

Not sure what variety or how hardy your roses are, so this may or may not be helpful. I grow hybrid tea roses in zone 3a and they have done well for at least 5 years. I plant them deep and on about a 45 degree angle to maximum the amount of branch that is underground. They look kind of stupid for awhile, but the new growth is straight up and soon you have no idea they were planted on an angle. Anyway, they often die right to ground level even though I mulch them in the fall, but the new growth from underground comes back strong. This year's growth is about a foot tall now and growing strongly.

I have a few Morden roses, which are much hardier than hybrid teas, but nowhere near as hardy as Rugosa roses. For the Morden centennial roses I planted them level with the ground and I don't mulch them -- they die back quite a bit each year, to maybe a foot above the ground, but the new growth in spring is strong.