Growing roses in Asheville- looking for advice regarding leaf drop etc.

My rose bushes are alive- set leaves beautifully early summer- but by mid summer- leaves are gone- though a bloom or two still forms. Is it a fungus? I use the standard product for food, insects, and disease.

Is it a loosing battle?

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Permalink Reply by Pam Ruatto on March 4, 2010 at 10:05am

I think black spot, which is a fungus, could be your problem. You can google to see what you could be doing that you're not, the best times to water, etc. I used to spray for black spot, put pesticides in the ground, but it didn't seem to help so I gave it up. My roses are actually doing better now, but that could be because I'm more rigorous about getting my amendments in and watering on a strict schedule. I also don't try to grow the finicky roses like Teas. I have a few roses that are resistant to black spot, Bremer Stadmuisken (sp?), Tchaikovsky, and the small Borderers all have dark green leaves that don't pick up as much Black spot, and drop less leaves when they do. My one "treatment" is to go around with gloves on pulling the affected leaves off the plants and dropping them into a paper bag that I put in the trash. I try to keep the ground clean of the affected leaves around the roses, but I'm not real thorough with any of that.

The most black-spot trashed rose I have, Edith Schurr, has such a nice citrus scent that I can't stand to give up on her. So I have her in a barrel now, surrounded by nasturtiums to cover her spindly leaves in July.

I'm anxious to hear what others are doing, and what their advice is to you. Good luck and let's hope for decent rose weather at some point this year!
Pam

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Permalink Reply by cheryl hasuer on March 6, 2010 at 8:29am

Thanks! I appreciate the info- I'm going to look up the types you mentioned. And I like the nasturtium idea!

How do you winter over the barrel?

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Permalink Reply by Pam Ruatto on March 6, 2010 at 9:15am

I just cut back the rose and let the nasturtiums die off, and then replant nasturtiums when I feed the soil in spring.

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Permalink Reply by Polly McDaniel on March 5, 2010 at 3:09pm

Asheville-Blue Ridge Rose Society meets March 14 and I just bet their members could tell you anything you want to know about your roses. And I think the March 14 meeting is a work meeting so that would be even more fun.
Some info from the society's site:
The Asheville-Blue Ridge Rose Society meets from January to November in the Red Cross classrooms

on Edgewood, just off Merrimon. There is a traffic light and a large blue BLOOD DONOR sign on the

corner.

Meetings are the 2nd Sunday at 3pm. Visitors are welcome!

At the red Cross Building we have a no spray (except for dormant spray) rose garden containing over

50 roses. This is a public garden maintained by the Asheville-Blue Ridge Rose Society which is also

a test garden that we evaluate on a yearly basis.

More info here: http://www.carolinadistrict.org/AshvilleRS.html
Good luck!