I have done both, and understand that the potted roses I got from my local nurseries are the same gift roses mailed ordered from Austin. They are all impulse buys, and I always "recommend strongly" to myself that I should either get bareroots or bands for half the price of potted ones (which, of course, did not preventing me buying those) . With potted roses, you get blooms from the get go, and you are paying a premium for that instantaneous gratification (and that green, square Austin plastic pot). In car buying term, you are paying for that new car smell. As soon as you put it the ground, you will get little value out of the extra money. My potted Austins will slow down and sulk for months once planted. They were pumped up by chemical fertilizers and pesticide.

Have you check Chamblee's and Heirloom? Some nurseries sell some of the roses on your list under their breeder's names. You can find more information/vendors at helpmefind.

Are you sure you want to plant grafted roses this late in the season?

Kate

I was also considering the DA "gift" roses, thank you for raising the topic. I planted three Graces in a grouping and complete wrecked one (moving a boulder while building a stone wall, darn-it!). If I wait to replace it with a bare-root next year I'll have a lopsided grouping, and no one around here sells Grace. I think it's a fair enough value, nurseries around here sell DAs at about $40. My main worry is that it would get overheated in transit.

Personally I have never had a problem planting a potted (grafted) rose during the summer, they have always fared about as well as my spring planted bare roots. Of course I grow in a much different climate than Dinglehopp3r.

Thank you both for your input, today I have managed to convince myself that I don't need these and should not spend the money on them, I just need to remember to plan ahead for next spring. Having said that it sounds like I am a picture of self control and composure, BUT....

I did just get home from the local greenhouse... who was having a sale.... and who happened to have a few Austins left over from spring... so ......I ended up buying one... Jubilee Celebration! I can't tell if I'm more excited or ashamed, but man, the strong fragrance coming from these roses is making me feel a lot better about my impulse buy. I had never heard of this rose before today, and almost left without it, but that fragrance kept drawing me back... that combined with the number of buds on the plant and an "excellent" rating on HMF did me in.
After reading about it on this forum, lots of people had great things to say about it, the term prolific was tossed around a little, which always makes me hopeful, but as always there were some people who didn't have luck with it, so we will see how it does for me.

farmerduck, your comparison to the "new car smell" helped me quite a bit to put this in perspective, as I have always thought people who buy new cars are a little silly for spending that much extra money on something they could get for a substantial amount less only a few months later (hope I don't offend anyone, my boyfriend is one of those silly people) So thank you for that, you are absolutely correct. Also, I will definitely be checking out Chamblees, I have mainly been looking at heirloom and roses unlimited, after hearing so much about them on this forum. Heirloom has a great selection and a great reputation (well, the new Heirloom does), but all they have right now are bands, if Chamblees has a one gallon available of Jude or Abe, I may end up getting one (we'll see).

Kate, I am slightly confused by your question, why would planting grafted roses in a container this late in the season be a problem? I understand that planting bare root grafted roses at this time would be all out rose murder, but what are the risks associated with planting established grafted plants? I most likely will put this new rose into one of the new large containers I mentioned getting yesterday, are there some risks that I should be aware of when doing that? I will keep it shaded for the next little while, and make sure to water it frequently until it makes itself at home, but is there anything else I should worry about? I am a newbie so I have no doubt that I may have missed something, but I assumed I would be safe, especially because so far for me June has been surprisingly cool and rainy, and seems to be staying that way at least for another week. Please let me know if there is anything more I can do to ensure that these plants stay healthy.

Thanks again for any and all advice!

Jessica

You need not be ashamed at all! You got a lovely rose and a great deal!

No, it's not too late to plant potted roses at all. Bare roots, yes...maybe, lol...but potted roses should go right into the ground or transplant without a blink. Just try not to disturb the existing root ball. It probably doesn't even need to go into the shade. I'm sure it's been out in full sun at the nursery for weeks already. Treat it just like all your other roses and it should do fine.

I would say you can plant potted roses all through June and maybe into July depending on how hot your weather is. If it's scorching hot it's probably not the best time to plant anything but if not go for it. I've dug out vigorous and healthy roses and transplanted them in mid July and other than a touch of transplant wilt, which some good watering took care of, they took off and did great. Know your roses and your weather and play it by that.

Also, I think that some of the DA potted roses are actually own roots. As far as I can tell, the latest (and last, I hope) DA potted rose I got is own root.