Hello all,

I just wanted to post a follow up on the group about my rose
experience. I posted a message a while back asking for help for a
newbie. You can see the original at the following link:

http://groups-beta.google.com/group/...bdbb624a45be5c


It has been quite an experience since then. There were pictures on
that post of a very unhappy, freshly transplanted plant. Let's just
say it got worse before it got better. I have had all kinds of pests
on the plant including aphids aplenty, several kinds of destructive
worms and the worst...japanese beetles. I had never even seen japanese
beetles around here and the other day I found three happily munching
huge holes in my leaves.

I haven't done a whole lot other than to fertilize every two weeks with
Miracle Gro Rose Food, keep the pests off, and keep it watered. The
watering part has been really easy since we have had a lot of rain here
this season. Oh, and I occasionally bury some banana peels around the
plant as I read that they are "junk food for roses".

So my reward is two beautiful blooms that just opened last week. They
are so red that it is almost hard to look at them :-). I haven't every
really had a green thumb so I am excited about these. I had three buds
at one point but some nasty worm at halfway through the stem at the
base of the third before I knew it. Below is a link to the picture of
them:

http://www.sirensongboutique.com/ima..._29_roses1.jpg

As I said in my original post these were marked as "Hybrid Tea Rose -
Opening Night
Jacolber PP# 11265" on the tag.

Thanks for everyone's help on that previous post and good luck rose
growers!

Adam

On 29 Jun 2005 10:00:59 -0700, "icius" wrote:

Well, I spoke too soon! I left to get my kids at preschool and when I
returned there were 12!...count 'em 12! Japanese Beetles decimating one
of the roses. They work so fast!! I think they laid eggs too or
something. Arrrggghhh!

I guess it is time to give up the idea of physical removal of pests and
resort to some kind of spray. If there is a natual kind of solution to
the Japanese Beetles, Aphids and worms that would be great. If not
then I will take suggestions for chemical pesticides.

Glad I took a picture.

I don't know how you folks with actual rose gardens do it. I have
spent so much time worrying over this one plant I can't imagine having
a whole bunch.

There isn't anything I could find that kills Japanese beetles once
they're in the adult stage. You can try Neem oil to keep them off
the plant. The oil makes the plant taste bad for the beetle and
they'll go on to other plants. To really kill them, you need to get
'em during their grub stage in the ground. There are several sprays
for the ground that will kill the grubs but also the good things like
worms. And then, if your neighbors don't do the same thing,
you'll continue to have the ravages of the beetles from about
mid-June through July. You can try hand picking them off and
disposing or use Sevin or such too when they are in the
adult stage. You'll have to spray every day though, to my
experience.

Hang in there, they will be gone by late July. That will be
when to spray the ground for the grubs and there after until
late fall.

Thunder

On 29 Jun 2005 10:00:59 -0700, "icius" wrote:

Well, I spoke too soon! I left to get my kids at preschool and when I
returned there were 12!...count 'em 12! Japanese Beetles decimating one
of the roses. They work so fast!! I think they laid eggs too or
something. Arrrggghhh!

I guess it is time to give up the idea of physical removal of pests and
resort to some kind of spray. If there is a natual kind of solution to
the Japanese Beetles, Aphids and worms that would be great. If not
then I will take suggestions for chemical pesticides.

Glad I took a picture.

You might try spraying the plant with Neem Oil, taking care not to
drench the plant. Do this very early in the morning, because Neem Oil,
being oil, can cause leaf burning through direct sunlight. It needs
some time to dissipate, so to speak.

We have some locals who say that this seems to work, AND it's organic,
to boot.