What zone are you in? If you are reaching forties already (like we have in 5a,)you probably have a freezing winter. You should wait until Spring comes before doing any major pruning back. It is a good thing when rose canes survive winter! :o) In Spring you will want to prune or remove broken, diseased or damaged canes. For winter protection, the big thing will be protecting the graft union of any grafted roses you have. A nice, big shovelful of mulch over the crown should be suficient if your graft unions are buried. I have some baby roses that are still very small. The potted ones will go in my unheated garage with bags of leaves for insulation. The outdoor ones will get similiar protection, just because they are so small. The Big Boys will sink or swim on their own merit, in my yard.

Hello, counselor4444. Insufficient water sometimes causes the blooms to brown out early but other times it may be normal for a given particular variety. Hydrangea colored blooms do not stay the same color for the length of the blooming season and will change from initial shades of blue/pink to greens, browns, other shades of blue/pink, etc. Whites cannot be changed to blues/pink but they will change to greens, light pinks/blues, etc on their own. There is a difference between a soft brown caused by color change and a ugly brown caused by lack of water. Can you take a picture perhaps? Initial color on colored blooms can be controlled by ammending the soil but the blooms will still change to green, brown, etc later in the year. Changing the initial color on colored blooms requires knowing if your soil is acidic (Ph Levels below 7) or alkaline (Ph Levels above 7). Acidic soils will result in hues of blues while alkaline soils will produce hues of pink. Ammending with lime makes sure you get pinks because lime makes ther soil more alkaline. Ammending the soil with sulphur compounds (aluminum sulphate for example) makes the soil more acidic so you get blues. Of course, if you want blues and your soil is acidic then you do not have to do anything. Your plants' roots are probably still growing in the potting container's soil so the initial colors you now get will depend on the Ph Level of that potting soil. Once the roots "break" outside of that potting soil into your garden soil or your own potting soil then acidic/alkaline ammendments begin to influence new blooms. If the blooms get ugly or you do not like the hues, you can deadhead them but be careful doing any cuttings/pruning because flower buds for the next year could be forming in your plants if your plant variety blooms on old wood. The link below will take you to a good website and discuss pruning and deaheading in detail. You did not mention it so I assume that your plants are in the ground, not in containers so, as far as feeding them, 1/2 cup of manure or cottonseed meal in early July will be enough. Then sprinkle some coffee grounds sporadically throughout the year. To make sure that the plant goes dormant in winter, stop all forms of feeding at the start of the Fall. These plants are not heavy feeders like roses so you do not have to fertilize them often. To determine if you need to water, insert a finger into the soil to a depth of 3-4 inches. If the soil feels almost dry or dry then water it (the soil not the plant or the leaves). Check daily at first and observe how often you end up watering. The make a habit of watering on that frequency. Increase the amt of water in summer and back down in the fall. Water a little in winter when the ground has not frozen and it has been dry. Does that help you, counselor4444? Luis Here is a link that might be useful: Pruning and Deadheading Hydrangeas

Dee & Annie I'm sorry the pic didn't quite come out as brown as it really is in realy life. It is the closest to Leonidas in colouring I've seen - truly. My Ian T still has much leaves on it and as far as I can see - no PM. However - as none of my other roses around it has PM - I would imagine that given another season and time - it would succumb to PM like some of my other roses - I'd have to succumb to the spraygun. I've tried to fiddle with the colouring here to give a better impression ....

Nat, I am really concerned that you are going to kill your roses by constantly doing something to them. All they need is the correct amount of water and control of blackspot if it appears (I haven't seen it in your pictures). If you added manure to the soil, then you have fertilized for the season. Look online at pictures of rose blackspot. Notice the shape of the spots and the fuzzy margins. If you find this on your plants, you can stop its spread with a fungicide containing only tebuconazole or propiconazole every 2-4 weeks. Blackspot will spread in summer after overnight wetting, or on drippy days in spring or fall. It requires long wetting with temperatures in the 60s and 70s.