Step 1: How to Tell Which Rose Cutting End Is Up

The Bud (^-shaped) will always be above the Node ring (sometimes a darker line around the stem, and/or a wider bump).

Step 2: Soak the Cuttings (optional)

Fill a clean jar halfway or more with water.
Place the cut ends of the roses making sure the ends are in water.
Leave the cuttings in for a week or two or longer.
I like to leave my cuttings in the water for even 1-3 months.
You may wish to change out the water periodically, but I rarely do, if it gets to that point, I just plant them in soil.

NOTE: During my move, I had cut several rose branches and placed them in a grocery paper bag in my garage--only to have forgotten to bring them home for a week. The branches had been in a broiling hot enclosed garage without water, and needless to say, they looked pretty dried out to a crisp. But I didn't want to just toss them out yet (these were the climbing Charisma roses), so I got an empty plastic detergent tub and completely immersed the stems for 2 weeks (no changing water). Then I stuck them into soil and hoped for the best. Well, I got about a 50% survival rate.

Step 3: Plant the Cuttings

Stick the stem cuttings about 2" into a pot of garden soil.
Keep in shade to partial sun until new shoots have sprouted from the buds, and then move the growing cuttings into sun.
Your roses may have its first bloom in about 6 months from placing into soil.

You may even wish to cut your cuttings down to 3" to 4" and double your plants, but they will be more prone to rot or dry up faster if you let the soil dry too long. The cuttings that are 6" to 8" seem to do much better, and if cuttings are even longer, the water has a longer length to travel up and down, and the cutting may end up more dehyrated with the upper part dying off. So 6" to 8" is a happy medium.