12-05-2003, 08:32 PM
|
|
|
problem with my roses-need help
(Shiva) wrote in
news:43f260d08ead66e6bfc89a8024e4d344@TeraNews:
While "wait and see" isn't bad advice, it is no fun to have plants
that "although they are in no state of peril" produce roses that rot
on the stems before opening.
If anyone knows of anything that DOES cause a rose to rot on the stem
before it opens, do let us know. This is precisely what the poster
said is happening.
If I read the original poster's article correctly (and I apologize if
I've missed something) there was no overt mention of blossoms that "rot
on the stem", and the photo doesn't entirely illustrate this scenario.
He/she said "they are brownish on the outside" and look "20% dead", which
I take to mean that the damage is partial. The photo seems to illustrate
this.
There are several reasons why this may have occurred. One, as has been
mentioned, is botrytis (which, full-blown, isn't very pretty at all, and
absolutely requires spraying with fungicide); another is thrips.
Two other situations to consider are excessive heat (especially when
coupled with drought, if present) and water/rain damage.
While most roses, as you point out, like a bit of a spray-off with the
hose (which also helps control pests and diseases), a prolonged rain
during the critical blossom-forming period will, for a few select
varieties (usually light-colored ones), result in brownish patches on
unopened blossoms or outright "balling", where the blossom refuses to
open and sits tempestuously on the stem until it dries out.
My Climbing Souvenir de la Malmaison does exactly this. It hates the
rain---that is, hates it when it comes at a particularly sensitive time
in bud formation. We've had more than our normal share of rain this
spring in Southern California (I noted that the poster who asked about
this problem is also located here), in particular a full-day rainstorm a
couple or three weekends ago.
Earlier in the season I lost the first flush of Cl. Souv. to an
excessively rainy weekend in March. The situation didn't affect any of my
other roses, however, and there was no indication that botrytis itself
was bedeviling Cl. Souv. In fact, the plant just opened up with a nice
second flush last week.
Now the poster mentioned having eight roses in his/her front yard and all
have been affected. This *could* mean a fungus is at work, or may simply
mean that all these varieties are inclined toward balling during what is,
for us, a more than normally wet spring. I think the suggestion to wait
and see was meant more as a caution; rather than use a plan of attack
that may be inappropriate for the situation, observe the next flush of
blooms to see whether the problem clears up on its own.
Whatever the poster decides, I'd like to chime in with my appreciation
for the foliage!
----
|