Question
Hi.  I was hoping you could tell me what I need to do to prepare my climbing roses for winter. I have 2 Iceberg climbing roses and one Pinata climbing rose. I planted them this Spring and have them trained on a trellis attached to a 5 foot privacy fence.  I live in zone 6 in Clarksville, TN.  Thanks for your help.

Answer
Because you don't nasty cold winters in your area, there really is no need to protect your roses in the winter. Iceberg is a very hardy climber and can withstand much colder temperatures than you will ever get so I would be thankful it is a no fuss rose. However Pinata can get dieback if a very cold frost hits it. So because of that, I would make an 8 inch mound of soil around the base and over the roots and that will protect the roots. Take the soil from another part of the garden as you don't want to expose Pinata's roots by taking soil off them.  Climbers, as well as other roses, all love to have cool roots and a mulch will give them those conditions. Pinata is prone to black spot and mildew if conditions are right for it. So if you spray this is a rose that will benefit from  spraying in the spring. If you are organic, then just use a fertilizer as the spray and use it monthly until the end of July.