Spotted Leaves

I started this thread in the Garden Talk Forum, but so far, haven't gotten any replies. Can anyone here tell me what this is, and how I can fix it?

http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/499006/

jdee,

That's called "blackspot" which is a very common rose fungus, and I think most of us who grow roses have to deal with it. What happens is you see spots on your roses, the leaves eventually yellow and wilt and then fall off. If you don't take care of it early, you could end up with a pretty bare rose bush missing most of its foliage, epecially if your rose variety is susceptible to it. It especially is bad in areas where the air is warm and moist. Some rose varieties seem to resist it well, as I have some bushes that never have a spot on them, but I have had rose bushes almost consumed by it. There are lots of rose fungicides available at Home Depot or Lowes in the garden section. Some are systemic and you spray onto the roses with a hose attached to the bottle, you can get some you have to mix with water in a garden feeder attached to a hose, and then others come in a simple spray bottle. Look for rose care products and you'll see them. They're usually inside the store near the garden center doors.

When you prune your roses each year, remove all dead/dying foliage on the bush and anything lying on the ground around it. Remove any leaves you see infected with it, since it spreads, and avoiding overhead watering should help as well. Hope this helps.

Steve

Is that the same thing on the camelia?

I'm not sure what variety my rose is. It came with the house, and I just kept it. Up until last year, I wasn't interested in gardening, but now I want to take care of it. It's a climbing rose, with beautiful red (sort of wine color) blooms, that fill the whole bush, then disappear when the heat of summer is too much. the flowers are gorgeous, but teh plant wasn't really much to look at, so Last Spring, I tried an experament. My sister had told me it would work. I cut a few stems off, and stuck them into the ground around the bottom of the bush. I figured that if it worked, I'd have a thicker looking bush, and if it didn't, no harm done. This fall, I cut it back to half its size, because the stems were all bowed out, and looking terrible. This spring, it seem to be coming back thicker, and I think my stem cuttings also are growing into it. Isn't the plant world great?

Thanks so much for the pointers.

Jdee,

A & M has developed some roses that have received the Superstar designation for hardiness and disease resistance. I pick my roses by an entirely unscientific way — do I like it — and then deal with the problems that come up. Last year, my roses were fine until July. I'm careful not to get the rose leaves wet, but I can't control the rain. Some of my roses had one or two spots. The rest had more, but I figure that's the price of gardening in Texas. I wonder if using the systemic fungicide early this year will prevent any problems? Steve, would that work?

Jdee,

I have not really had much experience with Camellias so I am not sure. I bought one and put it in a pot this year, and it hasn't really done much of anything.

Bettydee,

This is the first year I have tried a systemic one, so we'll both have to see. So far I haven't had a problem, but it usually doesn't materialize this early.

I got some of funguside/insectiside in a spray bottle. It was the only thing I could find that didn't have to be attached to the hose. It lists several plants it works on, including roses, but it doesn't say anything about camellias, so I'm afraid to use it on them.

The whole time I was spaying my rose, my nosey cats were following me around. It made me a nervous wreck. As much as I love plants, I love them more, and I'll never forgive myself if I poison one. I may just live with black spots.

I grew Camellias back in San Jose, but they were very healthy so I never had to spray. Google the fungicide or its manufacturer. The website should have a more complete plant list. Keep the cats away until the spray dries. Their curiousity about what you are doing shouldn't last long.