All band and 1-gallon plants are rooted cuttings and not grafted. In a true zone 7a winter (low of 5 to zero F), it's possible for some grafts to be damaged enough to ruin the plant. Therefore, ideally the graft should be just barely below grade. You can protect those planted at grade by shoving mulch over them for just the part of winter with temperatures below 10 degrees. Unnecessary mulching over the cane stubs can encourage disease. Most shrub roses will be hardy in zone 7a without protection.

gatorbone, that is correct. However, some roses do better on their own roots, depending on where you live and which rose it is. I am sure someone will chime in to answer this for you. Because you are in a non-freeze zone burying the bud union at all is not necessary.

Ann's comment about gall and not pruning roots should be strongly considered. Crown gall enters the plant through "wounds". A wound can be caused by root pruning; digging the bare root from the fields; "cultivation" or creating a "dust mulch"; digging in the root zone of the plant for ANY reason, including planting "companion plants", or even "working the old mulch into the soil" instead of removing it or allowing it to remain on top under the new mulch (as Nature does), etc. Animals tunneling through the soil, whether they actually eat the rose roots or just break them, can create entry points for the pathogen, too (gophers, moles, voles, etc.). Rabbits and mice gnawing on canes close enough to the soil for it to splash on the wound from rain or irrigation can also allow entry. This isn't a "scare tactic". Gall has been a severe issue for several years, both in gardens and in commercial production. Greenheart, Conard-Pyle/Star and others have destroyed (as well as SHIPPED), tens of thousands (perhaps hundreds of thousands) of liners and budded plants just this year because of gall. In years past, many producers treated their plants with Galltrol to prevent it from forming. They obviously do not treat them, or at least these specific growers don't. Receiving a plant already forming gall (which has occurred MANY times this year from the reports I have heard) is disheartening. Imagine being a breeder whose plants are under contract with a producer and receiving notice they had to destroy 30,000 plants of one variety; 50,000 plants of another and so on, because gall was introduced and spread with nothing done to prevent/control it. Do we REALLY want to help promote more of it?

with my near beach sand .... i HAVE TO remove potting media ... and plant in native soil ... ergo ... i would bare root a potted plant ... when moving a plant just across the yard.. there would be no reason to bare root ... and here is the important part .... IF I CAN LIFT THE CLUMP ... AND HOIK IT AROUND THE YARD ... without hurting myself.. or my bert.. if i had one.. lol ... so.. perhaps you are mixing potting info.. with in ground plants ... ken btw: dig the new hole first ... approximately ... so you can dig the plant.. and just hurl it into the new hole... when you are to tired to dig the next new hole.. you know its time to not dig another hosta.. lol ... ps: btw ... with the sand ... its near impossible to dig a ball of soil... it all falls off by itself ... so whether i want to bare root it or not... it kinda does anyway ... except on a huge old clump .. where all the roots hold it there ... this was a problem with moving conifers... and trees ...