Any gardener worth their salt will tell you that taking care of roses in winter is extremely important if you wish to continue to have good blooms next season. Protecting and caring for  roses in winter should be a top priority activity for anyone who loves growing them.

After all, you wouldn’t abandon something you treasure and love to the vagaries of harsh weather, would you?

To learn how to take care of roses in winter, talk to others who grow them.

The best place to find such people is to sign up with a rose society. Alternatively you can find out where the nearest local nursery is, and talk to their master gardener. You can also read up on taking care of roses in winter at your local library, through an online search, or in rose society magazines.

There are of course fellow rose enthusiasts all around you, you just have to look, and you can spend many a gainful hour talking to them about the various ways in which they go about caring for their roses in winter.

Roses aren’t hardy annuals, and don’t often fare well in sub zero weather unless you take some special care of them. They need to be pruned, mulched, cleaned and protected before they are ready to face that winter holds for them.

Don’t take the process lightly, and don’t sit on your hands till the cold winds begin to blow.

Experts agree that taking care of roses in winter is a process that needs to start well before true winter sets in. From fall pruning to special protective coverings, from cleaning to spraying, there is a lot to be done, and it is best to begin at least five or six weeks before the first frost is expected.

After a long and fruitful blooming season, your roses are ready to be put to rest for a while. Taking care of roses for the winter should begin with sending them the message that it's ok to rest now.

This can best be achieved by cutting back on the pruning, since pruning encourages new growth.

In addition, you can start to encourage the formation of hips. This too is a sure sign to your roses that it is time to begin the process of hibernating for the winter. Help the process along by picking out the petals and leaving the hips to form, and by not cutting any more blooms from the plant.

Decrease the amount of water you have been giving them, slowly, as they progress into dormancy. Remember how to take care of roses in winter while you are watching them go dormant, because you will need to apply some of those tips.

A major part of taking care of roses in winter is to make sure they don’t get damaged or come under attack from infection during the dormant stage. This can be best avoided by cleaning out the base of the plant thoroughly.

Remove all debris, fallen leaves, cuttings, old mulch and so on from around the plant, taking care to dispose of them safely. Under no circumstances should you use this for compost for next season.

Just read up a little, and follow what you learn about how to take care of roses in winter and you and your roses should be just fine.