Lack of water – watering is the most important aspect of looking after your rose. Especially, in the first two years.

Feed – Feed you roses more often as nutrients will drain through your soil very quickly. Adding well-rotted horse or cow manure will improve the soil structure, at the same time as adding fertility.

Disease – Look at your freshly fallen leaves and see if they have any signs of black spot, rust, or powdery mildew. If no signs of the following, then most likely cause is a lack of water.

• Pruning is essential for long term health and should be carried out in February when the rose is dormant.
• The first prune of Hybrid Tea and Floribunda roses should take back 3/4 buds from the base.
• Climbers, Ramblers, and Shrubs should be taken back about 6 inches from the ground on the first prune.
• Pruning is easy, with the rule of thumb for established bushes to be pruned a 1/3 of its original size in a frost-free period from mid-February – March.
• Always prune out any weak or weedy growth.
• Roses can be trimmed back after they finish flowering in November to stop wind-rock, but main pruning is done late winter/early spring.
  

  Tips for maintaining roses?

• Water your roses regularly. Make sure it gets a least 2 inches of water a week. (Deep soaking is much better than frequent, shallow watering).
• Throughout the blooming cycle, feed your roses consistently and use fertiliser to support healthy growth.
• Deadheading will keep your roses looking attractive and encourage more blooms.
• You can cut off dead/damaged wood, misplaced stems, or even suckers anytime of the year.
• Cuts must be clean, so keep your secateurs sharp. For larger stems, use loppers or a pruning saw.

Common types of pests?

Aphids – tiny insects, including greenfly, that multiply quickly on buds and young tender shoots. They leave a sticky residue on the stem or leaf called honeydew. Spray the plant with diluted washing up liquid on a cooler day and then wash the solution off after 15 minutes to avoid damaging the plant. Or if you can put up with them for a while, nature will restore balance as ladybirds, small birds and other predators consume them. As a last resort you could use an insecticide.

Caterpillars – part of the larvae family, and they love eating their way through plants. They munch on leaves with a giant appetite. Whilst they won’t kill your roses, they do leave bite marks and holes in the foliage and flowers petals. They may inflict short term harm, but they do feed the birds, and the leaves will be replaced in time. Remove them by hand when you see them, but be warned, they are great at hide and seek as they blend in incredibly well!

Rose leaf-rolling sawfly – causes tightly rolled leaves on wild and cultivated roses, not to be mistaken with weed killer damage! The rose leaf rolling sawfly lays her eggs on young foliage before injecting the leaves with a chemical that causes them to curl protectively around her eggs. No more than a week later, the eggs hatch into green caterpillars that begin eating what is left of the leaves, resulting in skeletonised foliage. Affected leaves should be picked off before the young caterpillar larvae have hatched and started to feed. Pesticides are unlikely to work.

Rose slug sawfly – grazes on the underside of rose leaves causing them to turn brown and dry up. Damage from light infestations can be overcome and should not affect the vigour of the plants. Pick the larvae off by hand and try to encourage predators into your garden such as birds and ground beetles. If you are experiencing large numbers of larvae, you may want to consider spraying with organic pesticides.

Red spider mites – When they’re at work on your roses, it will look like they are covered in spider webs. This veil like webbing provides protection from predators for the mites and their eggs. The leaves will discolour and become limp and pale before falling. Spider mites normally appear in gardens because the use of insecticides has killed off their predators. They are sometimes hard to detect until the infestation has spiralled into large numbers. They thrive in warm, airless conditions, particularly in greenhouses or conservatories. The easiest solution is to move the plant outside and regularly spray it with water. The red spider mites should take a disliking to their new habitat and move on.

Rabbits – These common garden pests love feasting on rose bushes – they are not as innocent as they appear! Undeterred by thorns, young rabbits devour the new tender shoots that are within their reach, whereas older rabbits will even strip the plants of their bark and munch on the higher stems causing major destruction. Creating a fence around your roses with chicken wire is the easiest way to keep the bunnies out, although it is not the sightliest solution. There are chemicals which can be sprinkled the ground around the roses to help keep rabbits away too, but these are never completely effective.

Deer – in rural areas of the UK or if you reside near open countryside, you may find deer venturing into your garden in their search for food. Unfortunately, roses are one of their favourite things to eat as they consume the buds, blooms, foliage and even the thorny stems. The best way to keep them out of your garden, or at least away from your roses, is to erect perimeter fencing and netting. These need to be relatively tall and robust to stop the deer squeezing their way through it or jumping over it. Alternatively, hedges could be an effective barrier so long as they are tall and solid enough.

Thrips – These tiny brownish yellow winged insects attack the foliage on a rose and can take over entire plant. They live in the buds and blooms of the roses, feeding on the sap within the petals. They can increase in numbers very quickly and can be a difficult pest to deal with.

Use an effective insecticide and try to control the infestation as quickly as possible.

Common types of diseases?

Tips for beating pests and diseases?

Tip 1 – Air Circulation – Allow your roses enough room t0 breathe and don’t plant them too close together, overcrowding them.

Tip 2 – Vigour – Natural vigour gives resistance to disease. Feed and water the roses well and plant them in good soil.

Tip 3 – Selection – Choose varieties with good, natural resistance. The newer varieties are tested to be disease resistant and may be an easier option to grow successfully. Shrub type roses typically need few chemicals applied to them yet bloom beautifully. Whereas Hybrid Tea roses are more susceptible to disease and need to be sprayed before the growing season begins.

Tip 4 – Observation – Get to know your plants, wander around the garden observing. Look for early warning signs of stress to the plant (a precursor to disease), disease that appears, or insects.

Tip 5 – Cleanliness – Don’t leave old leaves, wood or plant material lying around. Disease often starts on the leaves that are damaged (and therefore weak), or on bits of broken plant on the ground.

Tip 6 – Humidity – Too much humidity at night provides the environment for disease to start. It is best not to water in the evenings.

Tip 7 – Age – As roses age they become more prone to diseases. Think about changing plants after 10 years or so if they begin to decline.

Tip 8 – Prevention – There are some sprays that act as a preventative is applied before any disease is seen. We regularly spray our roses with the following chemicals and recommend these for home use too. Rose Clear, Bug Clear, Uncle Toms Rose Tonic, Liquid Seaweed and Sulphur Rose Tonic.

Uncle Tom’s Tonic – A fantastic, easy to use product that acts as a tonic/rose feed to promote new strong and healthy growth. Uncle Tom’s is a natural and safe product which is perfect for gardeners who don’t like to use chemicals within their garden.

Fungus clear – Systemic protection & control of blackspot, powdery mildew, & rust. It will protect plants & new growth for up to 4 months.

What would you recommend using for killing/preventing green fly and other pests?