If they're dormant, plant them. If they are active, wait until April.

They are in 3 gallon containers...the plants have leaves on them, but are only about 10-12 inches high. (I thought I would receive BIG plants.)
Keep them watered until April?....The only space I have to put them is in the utility room. There is heat in there and a window.

They are in 3 gallon containers...the plants have leaves on them, but are only about 10-12 inches high. (I thought I would receive BIG plants.)

Sounds like another TY TY satisfied customer...

You can plant them anytime the ground isn't frozen, which around here is all year.

I'd put them in the ground now if you want to enjoy the spring flush. Just make sure you water them well if it doesn't rain.

I would be concerned about the 6 roses that 'didn't do well'. What happened to them? Was it the drought or did they not get enough sun? Roses require 6 hours minimum of full sun to bloom properly.

I wouldn't worry about their size. I've heard that the knockouts grow fast and in 2 years they will probably need a lot of cutting back.

The six Roses I planted last year received enough sun... They were 3 Carefree Sunshine and 3 were Home Run planted close together...close to the road...The Home Runs did ok, but not alot of blooms as I expected...The Carefree Sunshine grew tall, looked almost like a climber and the canes just fell over.Spindly-looking I called them...
The two types of Roses just didn't look right together.
I'm thinking of moving the Home Run to "somewhere" and throwing out the Carefree Sunshine. I had planted a Carefree in another part of the yard, and it looked the same. I don't know if 3 pink and 3 red Double Knockouts will look 'right' together...but Knockouts are about the only Rose that do well in our rocky soil.
Though I will keep trying to plant others...even if they only look good for one season...and I keep replacing them...like, Double Delight...my favorite Rose.

Plant them now, but understand that if we get a late freeze like last year, all the new growth will be gone. That's ok though, since the Knockouts will survive just fine and won't be quite as good the first year. Reds and pinks together are simply in the eye of the beholder. I'd keep them separated, but that's just me. They do need sun, and you'll find that you will cut them back even after just the first year. If they get enough sun, they'll grow to five feet tall and maybe four feet wide. They don't need any spraying, unlike my hybrid teas, and they just need some fertilizer in the spring (not much at all the first year, and then only after they really get going). The first year it's best to baby them with something like Miracle Gro, which is pretty tame stuff. Do try to get the ph of the soil at 6.5 or so, which means adding lime to most places here in Georgia. It's best to get a soil test by going to your county agricultural agent, probably in the county office, where ever that may be. When you plant them, dig a wide deep hole and then add composted manure and Nature's Helper to the hole and to backfill around the plant. If you really want to get good, add just a little bit of triple super phosphate to the planting mix. Water, water, water.