I did pull the rose cuttings and both had roots, but they are dark colored and the dirt smells sour. I read something that told me that I may have over watered the cuttings and caused them to get root rot. They are looking even worse now. Is there anyway that I came save them or are they goners???

Well you have probably thrown them out by now! Your mix was too slow draining and thus had very little (or none!) air in the root zone. This causes anaerobic condition causing root rot and that rotting odor. Try again with a very loose fast draining soil less mix. Many usable ingredients are available, including grit. I like 90% of the mix to be made of particle size of at least 1/16 inch. Al

I killed 2 out of the 3 cuttings, but one of them has survived. I cut off the root rot and started completely over with knew soil and more rooting hormone. So far the cutting is still green, but I really wish I had seen your post about particle size before I planted it in potting soil. Would it be okay to pull up the cutting and planting it in sand or is it too late and I should just leave it alone?

At this time all I can say is "good luck". With cuttings you are working with a very finite amount of energy which was stored in the cutting when it was a part of the growing plant. You just do not have enough energy to keep starting over. Leave the cutting "as is" and cross your fingers. Al

So far it is still green but has no new growth. I'm still hoping it is alive and will root. Thanks for all the suggestions!