Winterizing roses?

[Crealcritter]

Last year I lost rose bushes. They seemed to have survived the winter (usda zone 7). They sprouted and I cut back all the dead. They grew a little then we got a cold snap over a couple days and nights, well below freezing at night (hard freeze). Then new sprouts died and so did the entire Bush, even the roots were dead such a sad story I know...

But I replaced the roses and have been babysitting them and they have grown huge and are beautifully healthy. I don't want to loose these ones over winter. My wife is happy with them and the colors I picked out for her.

I'm asking for some guidance on overwintering roses and timing on pruning specifically. I know I need to cut them back and cover them but with what and when? Should I time cutting back to the first expected frost? When should I uncover them? As you can tell I'm pretty clueless.

I'm not new to growing roses. I've always had roses growing for my wife and I dont recall ever having lost any like what happened early this spring. I have them in a raised bed on the west side of the house in close proximity to a brick porch, which retains heat from the setting sun. The roses really seem to like where they are at.

Thanks for responding, I really appreciate it.

 

[flowerbug]

the variety of the rose matters, some are grafted and you know what that means. as for pruning before winter i used to cut back some but not all the way to whatever was recommended as i knew some damage would still happen over the winter. it seemed that no matter what i did though i would lose a few plants each year and have to replace them.

where i am at now is about as inhospitable to the more delicate rose varieties as it can possibly be, but we have a few rescues that seem to be holding on - i don't even know what they are as they could be what came up as suckers on the plants we put in at my brother's place and then removed.