Mine are always rootbound when I buy them. Haven't had much problems I could really attribute to the rootbounding, though. Sometimes they have really been in the pot too long, and the plants look somewhat stunted, maybe a few yellowing lower leaves, leaves kind of leathery instead of young and full of growth, etc., and these don't seem to ever amount to anything--figure they are too old, which is likely on a clearance sale, but also figure they probably didn't get good care and dried out pretty badly a few times. However, I have been told to take part of the rootball in each hand and pull sidways until it has split about halfway up. This breaks the roots and tends to stimulate new root growth. In the ones that you dug up, were there any new roots extending out from the rootball? Have they been getting enough water? Transplants dry out surprisingly fast before the roots get extended out into the soil, especially if the top of the rootball is visible on the surface. If not watered frequently, they could just be sitting there due to drouth stress. If there were new roots, I'd just make sure they have good fertility and moisture and see what happens. If no roots, try splitting the rootballs a bit and replant. If you don't have room to keep them to play with and plant new ones, then toss and start over.

I would obtain a slightly larger pot and only pot up for now, saving the root work until late Mar/early Apr. You can then reduce the planting and probably put it in even an 8" pot if you like, but certainly a 10" pot would be no problem. Also, if the plant IS healthy, you should be able to just slip it back into another 10 incher, as is. Al

Mad Gallica, that is an excellent point and kind of why I was asking. I DO get roses that look potbound and when I unpot them, the roots are hardly potbound in any way. And they are not gallicas or OGRs at all. I was berated :-) for keeping Lilian Austin in a small pot in year 2, it was near death, and when I unpotted it, it was not potbound at all. In that case, I think the moisture control potting mix I had used in year 2 was responsible. But now I am using regular potting mix and Wildeve, for example, is not growing well. Maybe this time the pot is really too small. You know the large bareroots that DA/Texas sends? What size pot would you set them up in if you were not going to plant right away?

I would Repot!