"sharoncapps" wrote in message
...
`I have several rugosa roses that have aphids and I have heard that they
don't like any sprays or such on their leaves. The aphids are really bad
this year and I have tried blasting them with water but they seem to just
hold on. Can we use soap water on them and at what ratio do you mix the
soap and water. Thank you for any help.
Sharon in MN

Here's one article I found that might
be helpful:
http://www.rosemagazine.com/articles04/rugosa_roses/

Note especially the following section:
"Most specimens do not like to be sprayed with anything (except plain
water). I do not recommend applying any pesticides or fungicides, even if a
rarely seen bout of black spot is noticed."

That suggests me to that plain water wouldn't be
a problem as a spray.

Here's another link that suggests that water
spray isn't a problem for rugosas:
http://www.answers.com/topic/rugosa-rose

You might also check out the Safer line of
products, and try spraying a small section to
see what happens.

Gail
near San Antonio TX Zone 8