They were beautiful all summer. You pampered them, watered them, picked bugs off of them and maybe even talked to them. But now it’s time to think about tucking your roses into bed for the winter.

Of course, you’ve been preparing for this moment since late summer, right? You stopped fertilizing them, pruning them or even cutting them heavily so they would stop producing new growth.

Normally I’d advise you to be giving them plenty of water now so their roots will have moisture over the winter, but with all this rain we’ve been having, I don’t think that’s going to be a problem.

Once we’ve had several hard freezes, which won’t be for another month or so, it’s time to protect these beauties from extreme temperatures and from drying out.

Now, I must confess, I only grow roses I don’t have to fuss with. A sweet little pink rose called The Fairy does well in my garden, as does the Canadian Explorer series rose, William Baffin.

Although The Fairy does like a bit of protection, some years I have neglected her and she has always bounced back in spring. With the William Baffin, I don’t think I could kill him if I tried. I never cover him and he is always vigorous and healthy.

But, even more temperamental, less hardy roses can often be over wintered successfully with the right care.

So, once those hard freezes occur, mound six to 12 inches of soil around the base of each rosebush. If you do this too early, it may promote new growth and if you try to do it too late, you will not be able to dig the dirt. Of course, the dirt should not be dug up from around the roses. Bring it in from another part of your yard – from the vegetable garden, perhaps.

For tender climbers, unfasten them from their trellis or support, lay them on the ground and bury. You may have to dig up one side of the root ball to get them to lie flat. Tree roses are treated in a similar manner.

Another method of winter protection is to create a playpen for your bushes – a fence or wall around a single bush or a grouping of rose bushes. The fence can be made by driving stakes in the ground around the perimeter and wrapping wire fencing, snow fencing, or burlap around the stakes. Then, fill the area inside with shredded bark mulch or leaves. You may wish to mound each bush with dirt and use this method to provide even more protection.

A third option to cradle your roses during their long winter’s nap is to buy Styrofoam rose cones to cover the entire bush or to wrap the bush in burlap. It’s not too attractive, but often effective.

Whatever you decide, many people believe the beauty and fragrance roses provide in the summer are well worth the extra effort needed to care for them through the winter.