We just reassured Josh (TX) over on the Antique Roses forum. Some of the posts there should help you out and put your worries to rest.

Hope you house heat come back soon--we just went part of one night without here in Kansas. No fun.

Kate

Here is a link that might be useful: Frozen Roses (Antique Roses forum)

Thank you Kate, that thread IS reassuring!

The cold and dark house is no fun indeed. Though there's always a bright side, and the lack of electronics does translate to more family time!
In any case, I'm sure we'll be back up and running soon. Work crews are going above and beyond to get it going again as fast as possible. In the meantime we're warm and dry at friends'.

I'm more concerned about your lack of house heat right now than the roses. Heirloom Roses just sent me a mailing that said spraying down roses so they are encased in ice is a good way to prepare roses for winter. The ice at 32 degrees acts as insulation. The roots are what you need to protect.
My roses lost their blooms a long time ago, and are deep in dormancy. We've had terribly cold weather since November, so I was surprised to see those recent blooms on JC in your cold zone, redwolfdoc. Diane

Thanks Diane. I might sound glib about the house heat, but it has been a hardship. Luckily, family elsewhere in the city got their heat back earlier today, so we do have somewhere to go now. Outside is in the -15 range (5F) and inside our house is approaching freezing. We've taken steps for the pipes and taken our cat with us to warmer shores.

We actually had a pretty balmy November. Wet, but not particularly cold. December has been a different story!

Sounds like the roses should weather this well, if you'll pardon the pun. Or at least I oughtn't lose hope just yet!

I hope all turns out well with the heating situation!
God Bless!

I hope you have heat soon. Take care