Spring would be the better time to move them unless it is necessary and then you have to be okay with losing a few. I have planted in the fall in my zone 6b but that is quite a temperature difference. The more sun the better since in your zone 5a, even afternoon sun won't be that bad for most of the year. If you could make sure they get morning sun, that would be ideal since your foliage would dry off quicker which would help with some of the foliage issues roses are prone to. You could plant them in a group or spread out but identifying them first would help in your planting so that you could plant the taller ones behind the shorter ones. If you could take some photos of the bushes, leaves, buds, if any, we could try to identify what we are dealing with. Congratulations on the new home!

Yes best time to transplant is in the Spring when you can work the soil and before the roses leaf out.... (roses still in dormant state)...

Wait for spring as noted above. In your zone find the sunniest spot you can and don't worry about whether it's morning or afternoon sun. It won't ever be that hot or intense like it can be in warmer climates. Roses need at least 6 hours of direct sunlight to bloom but really prefer 8 hours to do it well. And preferably find a spot some place that has few if any tree roots. Roses don't compete well with them. Besides, it's a pain to dig holes in them, lol.

A lot of roses come with small metal tags wired onto the canes at the bottom. Try to find them if you can. If the base of the rose is buried you may have to dig around a little. Some times the tags can get buried over time.

If they've been surviving on neglect for all this time they're probably pretty hardy and tough so don't worry about moving them. Prepare the new holes first. You do want to plant them deep in your zone. You want the crown or graft of the roses, the place all the canes start coming up from, to be about 4 inches below the ground so dig deep holes. Then try to get as big a root ball as you can when you dig them out. Put them on a tarp or in a wheel barrow to make moving them to their new homes easier. Plant them and watering them in. If you do it before they wake up they'll never know they were moved!

What kind of bed you'd like is really up to you. Whether you plant them all in one bed or in separate ones make sure you give them room to grow. Most people recommend 3 feet from center to center on most modern roses. But that is not always the best case and until you know what you have it will be hard to judge. I would concentrate on moving them and getting them healthy for now. Once you begin to see each roses personality you will be able to make adjustments in placement better. Don't worry, you can move them again if you have to. Any rosarian will tell you they move theirs all the time. I know I do!

Thank you all, this is very helpful. I'm glad the consensus is to wait until spring. I've been overwhelmed with all the other yardwork and house projects that need to be done. I'll start scouting out a good sunny area and plan for next spring!

One more question: I pruned out the dead branches, but should I still cut them way back this fall?

No! Do not prune roses in the fall in cold climates. Roses store their energy in the canes. If you cut them off in the fall they will not have that energy available in the spring to come back with. Besides that you will loose some cane to winter die back so if you cut them short in the fall by spring you'll have nothing left at all. If something is really tall, over 5 feet say, and you don't want it to whip around in the wind all winter stake and tie it up to protect it.

Pruning out the dead wood was the correct thing to do and you can prune out dead wood at any time but most roses really need less pruning than people think.

Wow, I had no idea. I always thought you were supposed to cut roses way back in the fall. No wonder I've never had good luck with them. I'm glad I asked first. Thanks!

SnailLover

If your rose canes get winterkilled to or near ground level then you have no choice but to prune low to ground even in the Spring time..

But rose bushes that have winter hardy canes with not much dieback you have a choice on how much you want to prune off.

Yes, do hard pruning in the Spring...