Congratulations! I know they appear to be house plants but roses are NEVER house plants. They always prefer to be outside in the ground where they will be the happiest. You can keep them potted, in a large enough pot, but they still will need to go outside as soon as the weather permits.

For now, if you can't take them outside yet, keep them in as much light as possible and keep them evenly moist but not soggy. It's OK to let the top of the soil dry out a bit in between waterings. Most times people kill these plants by over watering them. They like high humidity but not wet feet. If you have a saucer under them remove them. Then find a deeper dish and put pebbles in it. Add water to just below the tops of the pebbles and then place the pot on top of the pebble but be sure that the water is not touching the bottom of the pot. This will bring up the humidity around the roses without over watering them. Hopefully you can keep them going this way until the weather warms up enough to get them outside.

Seil, thank you very much for responding. I had no idea they needed to planted outdoors. So now my next question is, aren't they a little small to plant in the ground? Will they eventually grow large enough to be visible and not mowed down? You see, I don't have an official garden outdoors. I have a small perennials patch but otherwise I have always just had annuals in pots. Maybe planting them in large pots outdoors would be the best option in my case. As you can tell, I'm a novice, at least with roses. After my late husband died I posted on Freecycle for someone to come and dig up our rose bushes so that they could be properly cared for and have a good home!

I disagree that mini-roses do not like to grow indoors. I have mini-roses growing in true room temperature and they are thriving now. They are located at a unblocked south window.

Many plants need a transition period to adjust indoors. During the transition, the soil should be dry and airy. Give them as much light as you can. Once adjusted, the dryness and the heat are no problem.

I have pictures of my azaleas this year and the roses last year here: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/houseplt/msg0714040427569.html

I will take some pictures of my min roses this year soon.

This post was edited by jujujojo on Tue, Apr 1, 14 at 23:22

opossumtrax, yes, they will grow to full size plants in the garden. Miniature roses are only small in the bloom and leaf size but the plants can get as large as any other rose and there are climbing minis that will get 12 feet tall. You can keep them in pots as well, many people do that, but they will need to be winter protected. You will need a garage or shed to keep them in for the winter.

Juju, you are the exception that proves the rule. If you are having such success I applaud you but I am sure that most everyone else on here will tell you that roses are NOT house plants and prefer to be outside. I have grown many of these gift roses and have never once been able to keep one healthy, blooming and growing inside my house. IF I can keep them alive long enough for spring to come and get them outside they immediately perk up and do much better.

Posted by seil z6b MI (My Page) on Wed, Mar 12, 14 at 11:51

Here is why:

My mini roses grow poorly from December to January indoors. I think the plants receive signals that it should not be growing. The signal comes from the sun.

But starting from February, the plants appear to have received the signal and they grow and bloom wonderfully. It is like they have been given the signal to grow.

We had a few warm days so I brought them out. Guess what, a few top leaves got burnt to light brown. These beautiful fined leaves have been adjusted to indoor South window. Yes, unblocked South window and room temperature are okay for min roses to thrive. I will post pictures soon.

This post was edited by jujujojo on Fri, Mar 14, 14 at 14:09

Hello, juju,sorry i'm with seil on this one,I am not sure the experience level or how long you have been growing roses is( no offence intended). But let me make a few points,.your roses are alive but probably not happy. However; they are tolorating being indoors. In the long run they will stop tolorating and slowly weaken and die. I know, i have tried it all. A south facing window is enough to keep this the plant alive but that is it. Me personnally, i find that the humidity issue isnt as big as the temperature issue of being indoors. A temperature of 65 70 degrees indoors is to cool for roses. However; if you keep your house at 75 to 90 degrees then, they will be happy.But we wont be (at least not with the bill that comes in the mail). Ask yourself this. . .How many flowers has this plant grown? let's say in a months time. That is the true indicator of how happy the plant is.

Everyone, I have been keeping the mini-roses in a house since November 2012 in zone 6b-7a. Initially it is a small pot of several sticks. Now four pots cannot hold them.

I will post current pictures soon.

I believe the indoor condition is sufficient for mini-rose to not just survive but to bloom reasonably. Certainly, outdoor mini-roses will be more proliferate.

I was given Minis recently as well, I keep them indoors but initially I did have problems keeping them happy... switching from soil to hydroponic growing has helped them a lot. They are finicky when kept indoors but it is possible to keep them healthy and happy. This picture is two from the set of four I received, they went into shock shortly after bringing them home and lost all of their blooms and the vast majority of their leaves, they were brought home on Valentines Day, spent about a week in soil and then were moved to the vase they are in now. This photo was taken today (April 1st).

Here is a link that might be useful: