Rosemary

I have two Rosemary plants in my flower beds and use them for cooking, but I am not sure what to do with them over the winter. They have grown well and I dont want to lose them, albeit they are cheap to replace

Thanks

Leave them- they are will be ok-rosemary is similar to lavender-hardy enough in the UK

Ta

Lost mine when it was very cold, though maybe it was the wet that did it.  Either way they died.  Take lots of cuttings and overwinter them in the greenhouse.

It dpends upon which rosemary's you have.  Most of the tall upright types are very hardy, though if it snows alot you will need to clear it off the branches, several branches broke on my tall one when we had the heavy snow 2 winter ago.  The low weeping or repens type - often called 'capri' is not particularly hardy, I keep it in a cool greenhouse over winter having lost it before.  Possibly it will do with fleece and newspaper, tuck  the pot near the house or uner a hedge.  If in the ground, then peg some horticultural fleece over it when the weather demands. 

I would say that last year I lost my rosemary to the very cold    and wet weather.They have in the past been fine in winter but too much rain and severe cold they could not take.fortunately I took some cuttings and also from my sons hedge and I now have replacements.I think with all plants if you take cuttings  at least you have a back up.

Thanks for all the replies folks

I have had a couple of Rosemary plants for 7 years, they stay out side all winter with no problem at all.

I have a large rosemary shrub in a pot outside and it is thriving. Surprisingly the cool, wet summer did it a world of good and it is bushy and green and looking lush. It always stays outside in it's pot in the winter, I don't wrap or cover it and it is doing ok. Has survived the last 3 winters. 

Could it be that some of them die in the winter as it is too dry? 

Rosemary needs well-drained soil.  Being Mediterranean, the big danger is cold coupled with wet.  If the roots are waterlogged and then get frozen - that's what kills them off.  If the soil is free-draining they can cope with quite cold winters in my experience.