English Rose, Austin Rose 'Charity'

I have a love-hate relationship with Charity.

For starters... In my garden, it is black spot prone and develops black spot...Read More as early as April and almost always has some spotty leaves.

I have 3 bushes. I'm obsessive compulsive about spraying my roses. I spray fungicide every other week, rotating Banner Maxx and Conserve, plus Pentathlon added to every spray.

Second gripe....Here in Zone 8B, the bushes want to grow into giants about 8' high and wide.

The Charity bushes were already in the garden I was hired to tend. Removing them will leave a big gap in the garden design. It's not an impossible problem to solve, just one that will take time to grow replacements.