I stashed a lot of roses in five gallon buckets to overwinter; some have been there for over a year now and seem perfectly happy. The handles were great for convenience sake and it was easy to drill holes in the bottom for drainage.

I always plant my new bare roots in 5 gallon pots. I normally leave them there for ~6 months. I grow most of my roses permanently in 15 gallon pots. But this year, two of my new bare roots are ultra-vigorous, and the blooms are wilting in their 5 gallon pots after being there for only 3.5 months. They are Parade Day and Love Song. Time to up-pot!

@HU-284226487 The roses I'm thinking about are:

Leda, Lavender Lassie, Jeanne Lajoie, Alfred Colomb, Souvenir de President Lincoln, Madame Ernest Calvat, Sally Holmes, Charles de Mills, Henry Fouquier.

Some of them claim to be hardy to zone 5 but I'm not so sure, as I've seen people on here saying they couldn't manage to overwinter them in zone 6b (the bourbons). So that list of 9 will most likely be whittled down. I'm always very open to everyone's opinions on these!

Ugh, on second thought maybe I need to remove the gallicas from my list 😅 not a single spot in my garden could ever be large enough for what they appear to turn into.

Jeanne Lajoie is super hardy, she doesn't have so much as a brown spot on her canes after a long and wretched winter here.

@joeywyomingzone4 It was you who told me about it on another thread! I looked it up after that and really liked the look of it.

Well, many roses are sold in 3-5 gallon containers in nurseries and big box.

Most of the roses you've listed simply aren't suitable for permanent pot-culture.

I know this because we tried to do it.

We ended up taking them down the hill on dollies, and putting them in the ground.

To illustrate -- This is 'Sally Holmes':

@jerijen Ha, I literally just bought Sally Holmes! And Madame Ernest Calvat. But since I only ended up buying the two, I'll probably find SOME way to fit them in the yard. Even if I have to tear out some more grass. Fitting in two more is going to be a pain, but not impossible. Or maybe that's wishful thinking doing the talking!

If you would like to keep a rose in a pot indefinitely, 20 gallon pots have served me well! However, these are pretty huge and definitely not movable. If you select roses that are around 3ft you could probably go with 7-10 gallon pots since the growing season is short in zone 5. I'm not quite sure how long that would last though, maybe a few seasons before having to pot up or root prune?

I've come to learn bare roots do need plenty of root pruning when planting in pots (if you are getting bare roots!). Otherwise, those thicc roots won't fit! Even those 20-gallon pots, I was lacking space for bare roots that are pretty developed! You may end up pruning a good chunk off if you go with 10 gallons, but this is not a problem at all!

I definitely don't agree with keeping a rose in a 5-gallon pot, even if it's for a season. Unless, of course, you wish to grow miniatures. To give a comparison, I grow ranunculus in 5 gallon sizes, and would never grow a shrub rose in it for a full season. Rose bushes that reach 3ft and higher definitely will need space to grow roots. I am also in zone 5 and the most important thing for a young rose is root development. You want to give enough space for those roots to expand so they can survive our cold winters better!

@Rose Sniffer Okay so, first, "thicc roots" made me seriously laugh, definitely not the type of colloqialism I expect on here.

I was talking about bands in 4" pots, not bare roots, so I figured I could maybe get away with something like a 10 gallon pot just for a few seasons? But of course in the ground would be best, I REALLY hope I can somehow find a space for them all.

About half of my roses are in pots. I do not grow (what I call) house eater roses. They would just get too big unless I can have them in the ground. The minimum size of pots that I use are 24 inches in diameter and 24 inches deep. I have had roses in them for years, but I do take them out and repot them about every 3 years. I give them some fresh potting soil, etc.

I find I move my roses in pots quite often. I have all of them on heavy duty plant dollies. I have been through the plastic and wood ones. I am lucky if they lasted a season. Not worth the money.

I use ones that come from Australia and can hold 100 lbs. Roses in pots are extremely heavy. https://bosmereusa.com/search.asp?_Group=Plant-Caddies

Yes, these are expensive but oh, so worth it. I have had mine for years and years and they still work great. Gets the pot off the ground and I can easily move it to wash windows, move the plant to a sunnier location, sweep underneath, etc.

Best of luck to you with growing roses in pots.

MM, I doubt sally will attain that size in your zone 5. It can be a climber here in zone 6 if we have warm winters but will be killed back if we have a normal zone 6 winter. I had 1 die in my virtual zone 5 spot but it was In a terrible spot with not as much sun. Lavender lasie is really putting on size since she has gone in the ground and I need to move her to another spot that gets more sun and hopefully increase her bloom. I have seen JLJ growing quite happily in zone 5Climbing up a structure.

I also put my newer plants in smaller pots to start although but wouldn't consider 5 gallons too large by end of . I Use 5 gallon buckets with large holes drilled in the bottom and even on the sides for this purpose. As joey states it's extremely convenient to carry them around by their handles. Just be aware not to put them Near a public walkway. My friend did that last year and I guess the handles were too inviting and someone walked off with 1.

@Vaporvac Z6-OhioRiverValley Ugh, I never really know how big to expect things to get here! But Matt from HCR lives in my same general area here in CO and he told me to expect Sally Holmes to get around 5x5. I ended up buying her as well as Madame Ernest Calvat and I am SOOOO excited! I found what I think are the perfect spots to get everything planted, so I'm on cloud 9 since it's almost time to put them all in the ground and I was able to contain my purchasing enough to avoid pots completely! For this year, anyway 😉

I’m trying two Lady Emma Hamilton bare root roses in these pots this spring. Hoping they do well. My husband welds so he made a steel plate with drainage and casters so I could move them around if needed. I’m happy with how they turned out.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Hanover-20-in-White-Resin-Beadboard-Square-Planter-HD1114-089/302655960

@Mischievous Magpie (CO 5b)

Sorry for late reply! Glad you enjoyed my choice of vocabulary haha! I don't have experience growing own-root bands, I didn't catch that and I apologize! Roses definitely do put on quite a bit of growth in one season. However, I'm sure if you start out with 4 inches, you can definitely work with 5 gallons for a single growing season. If you would like to give yourself some insurance for the what-if, you can always go up to 7 gallons. I planted a tiny little blueberry in a 10 gallon pot and I've been trying to protect it from all of the random snow and low temperatures we have been getting. It is definitely possible to move it, but when the soil is wet oh god!! 5 gallons, you can easily move to a protected area before planting them for next season :)

Lux: thank you for the great tip of lining the pot with material to ease in future plant removal!