Hi everyone.

I'm extremely new to roses. I bought a Hybrid Tea BlueGirl on Sunday
from the local Home Depot. It was in bad need of pruning and
deadheading. I took care of that, planted it, gave it a gallon of
water. It's been looking real good, transplant shock considered.
However I noticed some splotches on some leaves which I would presume
to be normal spotting on other plants. I've attached photos of the
leaves. Am I being paranoid or is that the beginning of black spot?

I also have a bad ant problem on my condo property, so I did some
pre-emptive spraying early this morning as I do not want aphids on my
roses (or other flowers for that matter.) Hence the liquid on the
leaves.

Any tips or information from more experienced gardeners would be
greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance!

- Elphaba

"Elphaba" wrote in message
...
Hi everyone.

I'm extremely new to roses. I bought a Hybrid Tea BlueGirl on Sunday
from the local Home Depot. It was in bad need of pruning and
deadheading. I took care of that, planted it, gave it a gallon of
water. It's been looking real good, transplant shock considered.
However I noticed some splotches on some leaves which I would presume
to be normal spotting on other plants. I've attached photos of the
leaves. Am I being paranoid or is that the beginning of black spot?

Any tips or information from more experienced gardeners would be
greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance!

- Elphaba

Elphaba,

YES, Blue Girl does spot-- bad-- and a lot. I have one and it's always been
a real fussy one, full of black spot.
Interestingly enough, this year I transplanted it from a very large pot into
the ground, and I've also been more fastidious about spraying this year.
And for the first time, it's spot free.

A healthier plant does also tend to help ward off the blackspot. But you're
probably going to have to be regular with your anti-fungual spraying to keep
Blue Girl spot-free. It's not the easiest rose to grow (to keep spots off,
that is). When it's healthy, it's a really nice rose though.

JimS.
Seattle

Thanks! I would have liked to have purchased a healthier plant, but my
nurseries of choice did not have roses. I knew I was going to have a
fun time getting this plant back to good health. Now that it's been
almost a week, I'm going to start on the spraying and fertilizing
regiment. I didn't want to overwhelm the plant.

Thanks again for all the advice!

On Fri, 20 May 2005 20:26:04 -0700, "JimS."
wrote:


"Elphaba" wrote in message
.. .
Hi everyone.

I'm extremely new to roses. I bought a Hybrid Tea BlueGirl on Sunday
from the local Home Depot. It was in bad need of pruning and
deadheading. I took care of that, planted it, gave it a gallon of
water. It's been looking real good, transplant shock considered.
However I noticed some splotches on some leaves which I would presume
to be normal spotting on other plants. I've attached photos of the
leaves. Am I being paranoid or is that the beginning of black spot?

Any tips or information from more experienced gardeners would be
greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance!

- Elphaba

Elphaba,

YES, Blue Girl does spot-- bad-- and a lot. I have one and it's always been
a real fussy one, full of black spot.
Interestingly enough, this year I transplanted it from a very large pot into
the ground, and I've also been more fastidious about spraying this year.
And for the first time, it's spot free.

A healthier plant does also tend to help ward off the blackspot. But you're
probably going to have to be regular with your anti-fungual spraying to keep
Blue Girl spot-free. It's not the easiest rose to grow (to keep spots off,
that is). When it's healthy, it's a really nice rose though.

JimS.
Seattle

Elphaba wrote:
Thanks! I would have liked to have purchased a healthier plant, but my
nurseries of choice did not have roses. I knew I was going to have a
fun time getting this plant back to good health. Now that it's been
almost a week, I'm going to start on the spraying and fertilizing
regiment. I didn't want to overwhelm the plant.

You probably know this but just to be sure, be aware that the
anti-fungal sprays do not cure black spot. Rather they prevent the
spread and infection. So, black spots on leaves caused by this fungus
will not go away after spraying. That's okay, a few black spots
certainly aren't going to do much harm. I just wanted to be sure that
you (and anyone else reading this) understand that while spraying
regularly can keep the rose fungus free, any plant parts affected by the
fungus are not going to turn green again. And you don't have to remove
those leaves with just a few small spots, either. They are still plenty
healthy enough to provide photosynthesis for the plant and if you spray
regularly, you'll control the spread of the disease.

--
Henry