If it were me I would exchange it now...
But then part of me would want the challenge to try and grow it into a awesome bush...lol

But if you decide to nurse it I would cut flowers and forming flower buds off of it for awhile so it's energy is concentrated on growing roots, etc.
Keep well watered... I guess rains doing that for you at the present time...
If it gets really hot shade the plant during the hottest parts of the day for awhile.

What's your general location and what growing zone you in? Thanks...

I am in zone 5B -- southeastern Michigan. It really hasn't gotten above 82 degrees this month.

Thanks... If you want to try and nurse it... Go ahead and try...

If not I would exchange it right now...
Best wishes!

It looks like it will live, you have several green canes. I wouldn't expect much from it this year though.

Actually I planted 4 small double Ko's in May of 2012.
In the winter rabbits ate all 4 to near ground level.
I pruned just alittle in Spring of course there wasn't much left.
Then I threw about 2-3TBS of fertilizer around them.
I'm not sure if the fertilizer or our cold freezes in Spring caused them all to have stunted growth but they had a heck of a time getting re-started this year... They looked so bad I didn't think any of them would make it for awhile.
But there all doing well now and growing...

Yours looks better then mine did...
I'm cutting off all rose buds this year so they concentrate there energy into growing roots, etc. and it is working... :)

This post was edited by jim1961 on Sat, Jun 15, 13 at 19:26

Is that rose being eaten by something? do you have rabbits or deer in your area?

I would take them back. It is too late in the season for those guys to struggle. You might want to check your Lowes. If they haven't already done it, a few weeks into July they usually clearance roses and shrubs. You could replace them then for a bit less money.

I'm also interested in hearing your answer to hoovb question...
If yes put a wire cage around it... Rabbits like tender
new roses to munch...

BTW what did that rose bush look like when you got it?

Looks like 2 canes that I can see are dying from the top down. The Knockouts my HD sells are fully leafed out/budded/flowering. This one had some catastrophic event to look that bad within a couple weeks!

Hmmm... I never considered the rabbits. Our neighborhood is overrun with them! I just transplanted some black-eyed susans my sister gave me and they are nothing but tiny, leaf-less stalks now... I was face to face with mother and baby standing their munching away...

I didn't know that rabbits like rose bushes. Strange that the other one is ok -- so far....

Rabbits will eat thorns and all...lol
They mostly just eat smaller tender growth here.
When the roses get larger they leave them alone.
But that's here and our rabbits...
So protect your smaller roses until they grow
bigger...

In the winter when food gets scarce rabbits will really eye
up those smaller rose stems...

I agree there is probably a damage by some critter. Rabbits tend to strip off the leaflets and leave the leaf stem. They also nip off new growth tips (as do deer).

If you decide to keep it--the black areas are cankers (fungal infections of the bark) that have girdled the stem and caused the part above to die back. These canes should be cut to a bud eye (leaf stem or bump where one used to be) at least one inch below the canker. Then they should make healthy new growth from the bud eye. With the dead lateral cane that is cankered at the very base, you can just take this off where it attaches.