Winter is rose planting time. Bursting their buds in late spring and blooming right through summer and autumn (often well into May), roses are among the longest flowering plants in the garden.  

1. Choose something new. Winter is an ideal time to plant new roses, which arrive in garden centres in June. Consider your priorities and take the time to choose the varieties you will most enjoy. Some excel as fragrant picking roses, others produce the most floriferous mass of garden colour, as hedges or elegant standard roses (minitrees). And there are roses that stand among the best of flowering shrubs as space fillers and ground covers.
2. Say goodbye to poor performers or those past their ‘use-by’ to make room for a more desirable variety. Some varieties are more disease resistant than others and some are more tolerant of poorer soils. Or it might simply be time for a change.
3. Choose a sunny location and prepare the soil. The best soil is reasonably well drained but has good water holding ability. Enrich the soil with compost or well-rotted manure. Sandy soils can be improved with organic matter mixed in at planting time and as mulch. A clay based soil suits roses well as it holds onto moisture and nutrients. However, if your soil is a heavy clay add some gypsum to improve aeration or create a raised bed, 15 – 20cm high. If planting a new rose in the same spot an old one vacated, dig out the soil and refresh it with new soil from elsewhere in the garden, mixed with some compost.
4. Trim new rose plants. Using clean, sharp secateurs, cut each stem to just above a bud. Rose bushes are only roughly trimmed by machine before leaving the nursery.
5. Soak the roots of ‘bare-root’ roses (those sold with their roots in protective wrapping rather than in pots) in a bucket of water for 30 minutes before planting. Trim any damaged roots with sharp secateurs. Keep potted roses well watered until you get around to planting them.
   
   TIP: Soaking bare root roses in dilute seaweed solution can help hydrate roots and promote healthy root growth. Use the soaking water to water the plant after planting.
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6. Dig a generous planting hole about 30cm deep and wide enough so the roots fit easily without bending. Make a small mound in the hole and position the roots over the mound so that the bud union of your rose plant sits about 5cm above ground level then backfill with soil. Water well to remove air pockets and add an organic mulch layer but avoid putting the mulch up around the stem.
7. A new place in the sun. Winter is an ideal time to relocate a rose that is struggling in an undesirable location. Poor flowering and leggy growth are signs that your roses want more sun. Roses that are close to buildings or overcrowded by other plants are vulnerable to pests and diseases, which thrive in sheltered or humid conditions.
8. Prune before spring. Pruning is the key task for July in warmer parts of the county, or August in colder climates. Remove wood that is dead, damaged or diseased. Then let light and air into the bush by cutting out growth that is crossed or growing towards the centre. Shorten back the remaining branches, cutting on an angle just above an outward facing bud. The spindliest wood is the least likely to produce flowers. If you're not sure where to start, your local rose society or garden centre may offer rose pruning classes.
   
   TIP 1: Prune modern bush roses by a third to a half. Cut just above an outward facing bud, slanting away from the bud.
   TIP 2: Stimulate new growth on old rose bushes by cleaning up around the crown using a wire brush to remove lichen and old scaly bark.
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9. A winter clean-up significantly reduces summer pests and diseases whose eggs and spores overwinter under rose bushes in leaf litter and prunings. Clear away the infested debris then finish off with a clean up spray.
   A good quality copper-based fungicide controls a wide range of diseases and is ideal for spraying during the dormant period. To minimise pests and break their life cycle, add spraying oil to the copper solution. Alternatively, a broad spectrum insecticide will significantly reduce spring and summer outbreaks of aphids, thrips and mites. When spraying, always follow the directions on the label and wear the appropriate safety equipment.
10. Prepare for summer. Thirsty roses produce inferior blooms and are far more susceptible to pest and disease problems. Replenish a layer of organic mulch each year. Keeping the soil surface covered helps retain soil moisture while improving the overall water holding capacity and fertility of the soil as the mulch breaks down.  
    
    TIP: Apply rose fertiliser in spring, once shoots begin to appear, to support healthy growth and flowering. Slow release fertiliser added at planting time will be activated as the soil temperature rises in time for new growth.