Hmmm...taking what Rosefolly and Campanula are saying, I find myself wondering why we're not affected by this problem here. I also have planted new roses where old ones were (I didn't know any better at the time) and some have thrived others not so hot. Some of the ones that were ailing, I replaced the soil which was a lot of work, and the same variety did not do well again. It's kind of a crap shoot for me actually. Now I don't want to derail my own thread, but a perfect example of this "some roses won't do well" syndrome for me was Abraham Darby. In December 2004, I bought and planted 12 (count'em twelve) Abe Darbys in a garden I was re-configuring: I had fallen in love with this rose. They were own-root plants from J&P. I had to shovel prune every last one, they would not grow higher than 18" for me after 4 years! Not to be discouraged (I'm pretty stubborn and dumb) I bought 3 more bare roots, from another source, these grafted....nothing. Terrible...they died. So I figure "I can't grow this rose, I give up!" Later...we're reconfiguring a huge new bed at the abbey, I order 3 Evelyns from an own-root nursery I swear by (best around) and they send me the plants, I put them in, they thrive and start to bloom like crazy - getting huge...but not Evelyn, mis-labeled roses, you guessed it, Abraham Darby. Summing up: after close to 17 tries, Abe Darby finally worked for me only from one of these own-root rose nurseries and I thought I was getting Evelyn. How I got onto this from specific replant disease is anybody's guess...but it felt good to get that off my chest. Happy gardening!

Traditionally, before the technology of refrigerating them was developed, most new roses were planted as bare-roots in the late fall. Transplanting roses as bare-roots is much the easiest way to do it. In your zone, there is a risk that a warm December could cause roses to grow out, freeze back, and deplete the plants or even kill some of them. However, that's the way I'd do it, as opposed to the expense and labor of potting. Just dig them with 12" roots and canes, strip all leaves, label them and bag them. Store in the shade until you can plant. They should keep well at temperatures mostly between 25 and 40 degrees Remove any growth buds that break before spring. After planting, spray the canes with dormant-strength Wilt Pruf.

All the new growth, or just some of it? If the latter, check to see if the bad shoots all stem from the same basal cane, which has something wrong near the base. If the whole plant is collapsing, voles may have eaten the roots. Rock the plant to check anchorage and probe for voids in the soil. Then there are a few wilt or blight diseases that are uncommon but quite destructive. These would need to be ID'd by a plant pathology lab. I don't know if NYC residents have access to the NY agricultural / cooperative extension service. Check the county listings.

I was hoping that someone from Florida would answer, because I live in a hot, dry zone and yours is humid. I water twice a week during summer, because of drought water restrictions. But we are allowed to water more to establish a new plant, so when I see signs of wilting, I water newly established plants more. Summer is very difficult on young plants, so I try to plant in the fall, so they can gain some growth of their root systems and foliage before facing summer. Someone once told me a trick about watering: Water a plant thoroughly and then count the days until you see signs of wilting and water again. If the plant wilted at day five, then water at day four next time. The problem with this is that variations in weather, i.e. wind, heat, etc. can change watering needs. When I first started out, I bought a watering probe. It was very useful at the time. Now I hardly need to use it. Best wishes for your roses and garden :-)