Most roses at the moment are having a fine year and full of early and late blooms. With these positives comes negatives though as I will cover in this article.
The main things to be concerned about at the moment is pruning and planting. It is the perfect time to buy and plant new roses also if you have roses that you want to move to a different area now is the time to do it. The ground is warm and the conditions are just right so that the roots can take hold and thrive before the winter frost has a chance to set in.
When planting roses be sure to mulch and fertilise. Horse manure is a favourite of roses, you can also use Rose Potting Plant Mix 60l to give them a good feed, this also goes for already established plants. Be sure to mulch at this time of year as the warm weather will cause the plants to dry out quickly. When you are mulching be careful not to cover the stems as this can cause die back.
When it comes to pruning be sure to remove any spent blooms as soon as they are over. This will encourage new blooms and discourage and fungal problems setting in. Any dead or dying stems can be pruned back also, be sure to always use a well cleaned secateurs as dirty ones can harbour viruses and diseases.
Pests and Problems.
Aphids
Aphids just love setting up camp on roses, you can recognise their damage by the sticky honeydew deposit they leave on the leaves and the stems. You may notice wilted leaves and the flower buds may not develop fully.
If the problem has not gotten too bad heavily spraying down the plants with water can dislodge the critters and discourage them from coming back, doing this every few days should control them.
You can also make up your own spray using a couple of teaspoons of washing up liquid in a spray bottle and spraying down the plant. The washing up liquid smothers and kills them and the film left on the plant will put them off returning.
Failing these methods and if the problem is out of hand Resolva Rose 3 in 1 or Rose Clear Ultra 1l spray will rapidly sort out the problem for you, both of these also cover common rose fungus and so are a go to when a plant is in dire need of rescue.
Powdery Mildew, Black Spot and Rose Rust.
I was going to cover these individually but as they are all fungi the solutions are mostly the same.
Powdery Mildew was named aptly and can be recognised by a whitish grey growth on the leaves and stem.
Black spot again causes black to reddish spots on the leaves and can also cause leaf drop.
Rose rust causes yellow spots on the leaves and a dusty orange deposit on the underside.
All of these can be prevented by good plant maintenance. Removing old mulch and dead leaves in early spring and clearing around the base of the plants can hinder spore growth. Be sure to replace with fresh mulch after doing this.
If the problem has taken hold you can make up your own fungicide by mixing half milk and half water in a spray bottle (some people use more some use less this is just what I find works). Spray liberally on the plant every 5 days or so until the problem resolves.
You can also get Doff Rose Shield Bug and Fungus Control which will also take care of any aphid problem you may have.
Enjoy your blooms!
Sophie x
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