I thought I could prove everyone wrong and at least grow a few perfect rose bushes. Never did I profess to grow a rose garden. The blooms were just beautiful in the beginning, but I fought the black leaf spot fungus with everything on the market claiming to focus on this malady. Nothing worked. Today I dug those suckers up and threw them away. I admit defeat!! Nevermind that it is still 97 degrees at 7 P.M. It had to be done.
7 months ago
2 comments:
I am a sucker for roses...four years ago I bought four high dollar bushes from a high end nursery...beautiful things. The first year they bloomed and put on a rose show second to none in the area..then black spot got to them
So, I went back to where I had bought them and spoke with the horticulturist who informed me that I had to keep the leaves dry..and I informed him THIS IS FLORIDA! It rains here!
Long story short I transplanted them to where they get full sun..check them daily and cut off any infected leaves and stems, and make sure that they get a good watering every day. They still bloom but are not near as pretty as that first year.
I recently purchased a couple of more...beautiful things with three different colors of roses grafted to the same root stock. They are supposed to be disease resistant but we have already had to cut them back because of black spot.
I have come to the conclusion that to raise roses on needs a covered spot where the rain will never hit them and a trickle irrigation system at the roots. I may try it just to see..
I am feeling sad now because I had fresh roses in a vase inside during the spring, but I just can't deal with the disease. I tried the watering from the bottom and everything else. Nothing worked. I even dug out the mulch from around the bottom and poured the fungicide all around the bottom. Didn't work.
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