[V&L]

I would like to move to Vermont, however I need to bring with me from NJ my 300+ rose bushes. Any recommendations as to which part of Vermont is the warmest? Specific ideas about beautiful towns that are relatively warm would be great too, thank you!

[Freak80]

Probably the parts of the state furthest south and at the lowest elevations.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by V&L

I would like to move to Vermont, however I need to bring with me from NJ my 300+ rose bushes. Any recommendations as to which part of Vermont is the warmest? Specific ideas about beautiful towns that are relatively warm would be great too, thank you!

The southeast corner of the state around Brattleboro. Also, look at the plant hardiness zone map as that might be helpful..

[ItalVT]

The warmest parts of VT are around Brattleboro to the south and the Champlain Valley in the west and northwest of the state, which is known as the "banana belt" of VT (obviously somewhat of a joke). Anywhere from Rutland to Burlington along the Rt. 7 corridor I find to be about the same in climate - MUCH warmer than points east like Montpelier and anywhere in the mountains. They grow peaches along Lake Champlain and roses seem to grow fine around here (and anywhere in the state I've been for that matter). That said, towns to consider with a slightly better climate would include Brattleboro, Middlebury, Vergennes, Burlington and Rutland. Although the map shows the southeast corner (Bennington area) as warmer also, I can say in the warmer months it is always a few degrees cooler down there (at least at night) than in the Champlain valley. This is because it is a higher valley down there and Lake Champlain has a generally warming effect on the climate. Good luck, my friend!

[SoulJourn]

Brattleboro and all points South and East. Bennington, on the west will be slightly cooler than Brat.

[OrdinaryGuy2005]

But how will you get all the roses up here?

[ansible90]

You can't be serious!!!

[cgregor]

Wal, I dunno. We do a pretty good business here at our surfing gear shop on the Connecticut most Januaries, And the banana plantations over in Townshend do so well they have to recruit Jamaicans year 'round. Good thing Jamaica's only six miles up the road. Most months in Springfield it's warm enough so there's a sunbathing competition between the residents of the Whitcomb high-rise (elderly) and the state office building workers on the roof of the respective buildings-- you can check it out if you use binoculars in the Lovejoy parking lot. My neighbors said the February heat darn near killed their overwintering parsnips. But I wouldn't expect roses to hack it in this state.

As global warming increases, though, Vermont is going to have a climate like Bucks County, Pennsylvania. I think right now Bucks County is Zone 4, which ought to be good for roses.

[Clark Park]

Originally Posted by cgregor

As global warming increases, though, Vermont is going to have a climate like Bucks County, Pennsylvania. I think right now Bucks County is Zone 4, which ought to be good for roses.

Bucks County is Hardiness Zone 6b. Most of Philadelphia is in Zone 7a - 7b.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by cgregor

Wal, I dunno. We do a pretty good business here at our surfing gear shop on the Connecticut most Januaries, And the banana plantations over in Townshend do so well they have to recruit Jamaicans year 'round. Good thing Jamaica's only six miles up the road. Most months in Springfield it's warm enough so there's a sunbathing competition between the residents of the Whitcomb high-rise (elderly) and the state office building workers on the roof of the respective buildings-- you can check it out if you use binoculars in the Lovejoy parking lot. My neighbors said the February heat darn near killed their overwintering parsnips. But I wouldn't expect roses to hack it in this state.

As global warming increases, though, Vermont is going to have a climate like Bucks County, Pennsylvania. I think right now Bucks County is Zone 4, which ought to be good for roses.

It will likely get milder, but plant hardiness zones take into account the coldest temperature that an area experiences each winter. Even with a warming trend, an area can still see very cold low temperatures that are aligned with a particular plant hardiness zone designation- so the end result is a bit more complex. Urban areas are an entirely different case due to a large heat island with the concrete/pavement everywhere.