You've actually moved the peony at the perfect time! Good move with the bucket of water, too.

Look at the peony and you'll probably be able to discern where the soil level was on it... the topmost "eyes" are usually about 1 1/2" below the soil level. If you shoot for that depth, or a bit HIGHER when you plant you'll be OK. Dig a generous hole and begin filling it and WATERING to settle the soil. Hold the peony at the height you want and continue backfilling and gently tamping down the soil and then watering as you go. What you want, is the root to be at about the same depth it was when it was growing somewhere else.

Things tend to "settle" with time and the peony may sink... so that's why I say water as you go and set it HIGHER. Peonies set too deeply are crabby about blooming. I've transplanted several and have had good luck with what I've described above. But expect to wait a couple of years for a really spectacular show. It'll be worth it.

Peonies are incredibly tough plants! they shrug off the cold and are quite forgiving, but you don't want those little pink eyes to be too deep.

I struggle with roses... I'm too "reactionary" for the like of them. Sorry!

Linnea:

I don't know anything about peonies but it sounds like you got some sage advice above. But let me tell you about my rose 'Mary Rose' that we moved a couple weeks back.

This rose did great last year and really dragged this year. Mainly due to a lack of sunlight. So I think two weekends back we decided to move it into a pot and then we plan to sink the pot until next spring when it can be re planted.

To that end my husband who can be a bit impatient at times went out to the where the rose was planted, shoved the shovel in the ground about ten inches from the base all around the perimeter of the plant, and then kind of unceremoniously pulled it out of the ground. I could only stand there speechless! Rough treatment for sure.

We then put the poor baby in a very large pot filled with potting soil, a handful of steer manure and some bonemeal and left her in shade for over a week (well watered). At that time I also cut back the canes to about 14 inches tall leaving whatever foliage looked decent.

Last week I brought the pot out to where it could get half day sun and then on Saturday up to where other roses in the yard are, nearly all day sunny conditions. This morning I noticed she is getting lots of new growth and has purple foliage coming on in several places.

Go figure! I thought after what my husband did to her she was a goner for sure. Roses can be remarkably tenacious.

Having blathered on about all that let me ask you this. Were the roses healthy before? Can we see a picture? Do you want to plant them in pots? The ground? What's your plan for doing with these if they make it? I know this is considered to be the wrong time to cut back roses, especially in your zone. So you might just want to focus on getting your transplants stabilized and then if they are still kicking in the spring you can cut back dead/leggy canes at that time.

Hope this helps.

Kate

I'd plant the rose in the ground as soon as you can. We don't have much time left before winter and you want it to get as well established and healthy as possible. I wouldn't cut it back at all as it will need the leaves it has. Do you know what kind of rose it is? Do you know if it has blackspot? That could result in a loss of leaves like you describe. If it has blackspot you should start spraying it with a fungicide right away. You want it healthy going into winter and it might not make it if it has blackspot. Roses are very good about being transplanted and it should be okay. Oh, and when you plant it look for a graft knob. It will look like kind of a big knot between the roots and the canes. That should be buried a couple of inches deep.

Thanks for the advice! I couldn't plant them today as it is raining, but hope to tomorrow.

For the peony, there are no "eyes", just roots and stems with leaves. The leaves did wilt promptly but I was expecting that. By eyes you mean what the shoots look like when they are just sprouting in the spring? Like hosta eyes?

The rose does have leaves, but they are widely spaced on very long thin stems. I'm pretty sure that's because it was surrounded by tall phlox and had to reach for the light. It's not a climber. The leaves look small but healthy. When he bought it for my mother my Dad was asking for a rose with a scent. (He complained that hybrid teas did not have much of a scent). It may be a floribunda or another similar variety that is more scented than a hybrid tea, but still readily available in the average garden center.

This will be planted in the ground, not in a pot. I haven't decided where yet: need to find a place with enough sun. I have one rose at present, a Chicago Peace, that has it's own spot separate from my main garden. I know roses don't like to compete with other perennials. I will probably have to dig out some grass for both of them.

Peony roots are pretty big and rugged. They sort of remind me of deer antlers! And about this time of year you will see little, pinkish "nubs" protruding from the roots at or just below what was just below ground level in the previous site.

They're sort of on the order of potato eyes... scope out the Peony forum, I'll be they'll have a FAQ or gallery that will show you what I'm trying to describe.

If there are really no "eyes", then the Peony people are the ones to talk to! They will know what you should do to set the roots so that NEXT year they will be acclimated enough to set "eyes".

Did the peony you dug flower last year? (this may give a clue about "eyes" or lack thereof.
Make sure you plant it in FULL sun, in good loamy soil.

You know, I didn't examine the peony roots really closely: it was getting dark and my husband was doing the digging while I was doing something else. I'll check them again now that I know what to look for. This one did bloom earlier this year: I had marked it after seeing the color of the bloom.

Our soil is former farmland so pretty good. But about 10 inches down is clay. Should we add manure or peat, etc., while planting?

One thing no one mentioned is that you should cut the stems off the peonies. If you have lots of long roots, cut them back. You mainly want the tuber portion with the eyes and about six inches of root. Cutting the roots back stimulates them to grow new roots. Work plenty of compost into the planting hole and as mentioned earlier, water to settle the soil. You don't want too much soil over the eyes or they won't bloom. Don't expect too much of them next year. But this is the best time of year to be moving peonies.

Something else to consider if you're unsure about where to plant your new rose at the moment. You can plant it in the ground to 'hold' it if you will until next spring. Just to get it stabilized. Same goes for putting in a pot if you choose to overwinter it that way providing you have a plan to keep it protected if it lives in a pot until next spring.

I think most of us know that feeling that you must do something with a certain plant now and maybe just getting it planted until you can figure out something permanent next spring is best.

Kate

Keep the rose in a pot for now. Keep the pot in a saucer of water in the shade. If and when parts of it die off, prune them out, but it may have enough roots and enough water to keep most of it going. In about two weeks, you'll know whether or not it's stabilized in the pot. What leaves it has kept will look good, and it will probably start putting out new growth. I'd personally keep it in the pot until late October, then decide whether or not to plant it out. Mostly that will depend on your specific options.

Regarding the peony, yes you move peonies in the fall. However, it isn't fall yet. It will probably be fine, however, I wouldn't cut off the foliage unless it is dying off. I also wouldn't worry about a lack of visible growth eyes. Peonies push those out in the fall.

Just make sure to plant the peony at the same level it was or a bit shallower. It's OK if those eyes come at ground level.
Since you're in zone 5 and this is mid-September, I'd probably plant that rose in a sunny spot right now and keep it well watered. And that's a couple of pails of water every other day if there isn't substantial rain.