The best depends on your soil conditions--you want a rootstock that grows well in your soil. For many people with alkaline soil, Dr. Huey grows well, while multiflora grows well in acid soil. But, if you have nematodes, or parasitic worms in your soil, neither may do well. Nematodes are a problem in Florida--you can buy roses grafted on Fortuniana that resist nematodes. But, if you have a cold climate, Fortuniana is a lousy rootstock. You often have to experiment to find out how different own roots do in your particular soil conditions, while an ARS certified Consulting Rosarian should be familiar with how Dr. Huey and multiflora do in your area.

Bare root is a rose that has been taken out of its soil, usually for shipping economy. Own root is a rose that has NOT been grafted onto a host root. They really have very little, if anything, to do with each other.

Lisa, here is more info. One has to do with how roses are sold, the other with how they are propagated.

How they are sold:
Bare root vs potted: Roses are sold to the public either as a dormant bare root (looks like bare sticks, no dirt) or actively growing in a pot with dirt.

How they are propagated:
Grafted vs own root: Roses can be grafted onto a more vigorous rootstock (a different rose) or grown on their own roots.

You can buy grafted bare roots (bagged, boxed or sold through the mail), own root bare roots (not common, but there are some out there, usually mail order), grafted potted (you'll find this at your local garden center) or own root potted (usually sold through the mail, but you might be lucky enough to find a local nursery). Head spinning yet? :-)

What you decide depends on how the rose is available and the growing conditions in your garden. Depending on where you live, the hardiness of the variety may be the most important factor. Many of the old garden roses are only available as potted on their own roots. Other roses are available in many forms. Zack mentions some of the other reasons.

Online/mail order vendors will tell you if their roses are grafted or own root and if they are sold potted or bare root.

I'm from an era where there was no such thing as own root. The roses in my garden are as old as 40 years. The bud unions are long ago gone, the rose exists from above the original bud union. From all the mulching the bud union would be down at least a foot anyway. The real change came about when we discovered deep planting and realized that roses would grow very well thank you on their own roots. The grafting part was for convenience and it gave the rose a good start but if you followed the sellers instructions and planted the bud union well above the soil line, at least in cold zones the rose probably wouldn't survive. At the least, the rose would be only as good as the bud which often deteriorated and so did the rose. The rose needed to be on its' own roots. If you know how to plant, you can still buy grafted plants but I would always go with own even though they take a bit longer. If you are a novice rose grower definitely buy own root. If you can only get it grafted, that's OK too. My two cents. Henry

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