Topic: Yellow leaves on rose bushes???

[aromatic]

 :-\  Wondered if anyone could give me some much needed advice on the yellowing and in some cases dropping leaves on my rose bushes. I am rather a novice when it comes to roses I am afraid. Last year my OH and I filled our rose garden with new rose bushes and they were fabulous, this year they do look in a really sorry state!!

                 

[Baccy Man]

There are several possibilities I would suspect water stress but this 3 part article is probably more useful than anything I can say.

http://www.gardenguides.com/how-to/tipstechniques/flowers/roses/yellowleaves1.asp

[Brogusblue]

Hello

Yellowing leaves could be lack of water or you may have the disease called black spot several of my roses of mine have some are more prone to others plus we have had a array of weathers just lately warm then cold sudden cold snaps so it could just that they should recover.
If you give the rose names i can have a look for you as i am a member of the RNRS.  Here's some general advice below.

Rose Care Advice
Feeding and Mulching
To get the best from roses they need regular feeding. An old rose saying is 'a well fed rose is a healthy rose'. A clay soil will need the addition of a rose fertilizer twice a year, in March (after pruning) and after the first flush of flowers is over (usually late-June to July). Roses growing in a sandy or chalky soil will need feeding monthly from March to end-July - a small handful of rose fertilizer will suffice.

Roses growing in aloamy soil will benefit from feeding three or four times between March and the end of July. Mulching is a good practice: garden compost, leaf mould or well-rotted manure will keep the moisture in the gorund, but bark chippings are best avaoided.

Watering
Roses will tolerate a dry soil but thrive in a moist, well drained soil. If the ground is dry, water well occasionally. Little and often watering is best avaoided. Rose growers find watering in the morning or keeping the leaves dry reduces incidence of disease.

Pests and Diseases
Many pages have been written on keeping rose free of pests and diseases, but with good husbandry (proper feeding and watering) and choosing heathly varieties of roses they can be avoided. If diseases appear spray with a popietary fungicide.

If pests (aphids) are troublesome try wiping them off or use an insecticide such as derris which is due to banned from September 2009

Cheers
Brogusblue

[aromatic]

 :-\  Thank you so much for all of your help 'Baccy Man' and 'Brogusblue' I have read all of the very helpful information you have posted and I am now convinced its blackspot, so will spray accordingly. I have certainly learnt a great deal from both of your posts and I realise I do have a lot to learn regarding rose care. I will endeavour to ensure that I take far more care over the roses from now on. I will start by spraying for blackspot and then I will proceed to feed and mulch them. The only thing I am now concerned about is pruning which I have so far failed to do (have no idea how to go about this either) The roses are starting to bud although far more lanky this year. What should I do now, prune regardless of the budding, or leave them be until after flowering???  I know you prune just before a shot/new leaf, but what angle do you prune them at... or am I talking  rubbish here?  Brogusblue I will have a look at the labels on the roses as soon as possible and let you know the names. Thank you once again.... I am very, very grateful!!

                                                 

[Brogusblue]

Hello

I would let them flower and then prune in oct/nov or when the rose is stopped flowering and then prune all the leggy stems out and next year in march/april give a good feed and it should come back with strong growth.

Advice from rnrs

When should I prune my roses?
Bush roses benefit from a tidy up in the autumn to prevent wind rock. Main pruning and training takes place around March-April after the winter frosts. A clean sloping cut is essential to avoid disease and the collection of water.

Pruning

Pruning is easy, with the rule of thumb for established bush roses being to prune to one third original size in a frost-free period from mid-February (southern England) to mid-March. prune out any weak, weedy growth. Roses can be trimmed back after they finish flowering in November to stop wind-rock but the main pruning is done late-winter/early spring.

If planting bare-root bush roses between October and March, these roses will need an additional pruning (even though they look pruned). The method on these is to prune to around 8cm from the ground - this looks savage but it will encourage the roots to grow and produce a stronger plant in the long term. If you are worried about pruning, don't be, pruning can be undertaken with secateurs or a hedge trimmer.

Cheers
Brogusblue