planting rose bush in N Carolina

[Anonymous]

I have an acquaintance who is moving to N Carolina in December and I would like to get her a gift for her new home. I was thinking about a rose bush, but it occurs to me that maybe planting a rose bush in December isn't feasible? Maybe this is a stupid question--I live in the northeast and always think of N Carolina as having a fairly warm, temperate winter, but maybe I am being too optimistic! Thank you for any advice.

[Anonymous]

Rose bushes are lovely but the nicest ones take lots of care. Do you know that your acquaintance wants to take on the job?

[Anonymous]

This is not the best time to plant. Roses are typically planted in spring. Where in NC is your friend moving to? Witherspoon Roses in Durham is a gorgeous nursery.

[Anonymous]

She is moving to just outside Asheville and is a fairly avid gardener, so I feel pretty confident she would like a rose bush. But maybe a gift card to a local nursery is a better bet at this time of year...then she can buy whatever she wants in the spring.

[Anonymous]

I don't think even the warmest part of NC (coastal SE) would be OK to plant in December.
Either she has to keep it indoor or wait till Spring to plant inground.

[Anonymous]

It will be fine. Plant away.

[Anonymous]

You can plant container roses (growing in soil) any time in NC pretty much unless they’re weirdly out of sync (like you wouldn’t want to take one that has been blooming in a greenhouse or something and then plunk it down in January). You can also plant bare root roses in late winter/early Spring.

As a gardener, I don’t think this is a good gift. If you know she likes roses, a gift certificate to David Austin roses or Heirloom roses might be nice. Biltmore Estate has a huge rose garden so she can see what grows well in the area that she likes.

A pair of Felco secateurs is a great gardener gift imo.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think even the warmest part of NC (coastal SE) would be OK to plant in December.
Either she has to keep it indoor or wait till Spring to plant inground.

This isn’t true. Roses are really hardy. It might not be ideal but probably fine to plant a container rose if you could find one for sale.