I would put them in semi shade for a week and water faithfully. I bet they will do just fine. They don't look bad considering. Pink Cloud should put out new leaves in two or three weeks.

I think that Sheila's probably right, but there's a part of me that also thinks-why risk it if they are offering you free replacements? They don't tend to have that "the customer is always right" attitude here in Europe,so maybe I'm a bit warped...

I think they look like roses that have been smooshed in a box for a week. I agree with Sheila.

I had a similar experience with another vendor and they replaced them. They said they're insured with the shipper. I kept the mangled plants and have been growing them up, but they are still lagging considerably behind the new ones and one, in particular, is just now showing some growth. So in 3.5 months they still haven't caught up. However, mine had multiple broken canes and the loss of those leaves really seemed to affect growth. The replacements were fabulous and in keeping with the plants I'd seen here. Just my experience.

I've received shipments from Ludwig's as well as shopped on site. The roses all had good root systems and recovered from any damage or shock.

I ordered a Purple Lodge from Ludwigs. It was shipped promptly and arrived with leaves yellowed and falling off. I thought the rootball was too wet so I took the plant out of the pot and left it in open air a day or two, then potted it up in lighter potting soil. I contacted them and sent pictures and told them I'd wait to see how it did. They offered a new plant if needed. The plant lost all its leaves but then put out all new leaves and has grown extremely well and has been blooming . Looks better than some others I bought this spring.

I agree with your impression that Ludwigs has good, conscientious people. I think about them sending a rootball on the wet side, and how that costs them more to ship. They are in a hot area and I bet they don't want the plants to dry out in transit. I think maybe they need a lighter weight potting soil. I think it's pretty likely your plants will be ok.

Roses shipped when it is hot typically arrive here with yellowing leaves or NO leaves. I feel the vendors know this and that's why they cut the price.

I don't feel entitled to a refund OR replacement on a "clearance sale" rose.

In fact I've lost a couple roses because I did not promptly repot in a lighter mix; I probably drowned Julia Child this way. She was gone in 4 weeks and no I did not ask for a replacement.

Erasmus_gw, thanks, I agree - I plan to repot mine this evening (I wanted to give them a few days to rest before repotting). Barbarag_happy, I see what you are saying. However, the issue here is that my shipment was delayed - it was supposed to be 2-day shipping, but it took over a week (I would guess that Ludwig's has some kind of insurance with FedEx for these kinds of situations). Thanks for your comments!