Join us for our next meeting
May 19, 2013
Location: Richmond Children's Hospital
Refreshments: 2:00 p.m.
Meeting and Program: 2:30 p.m.
Topic: To be announced
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Spring 2013 Rose Show
Richmond
Rose Show at Lewis Ginter
Botanical Gardens.
Saturday May 25, 2012. Open to the public from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.
Sunday May 26, 2012. Open to the public from 11:00 to 3:30 p.m.
Proper rose care involves fertilizing, weed prevention, watering
and a preventative spray program.
Fertilizing:
Here’s a subject that has filled chapters in rose books. Once again,
it’s a topic that can be boiled down to three basic rules.
1. Feed
the soil. While supplying nutrients to the bush is important, feeding
the bacteria in the soil that breaks down fertilizer into a form
that your roses can consume is equally important. Be sure to give
your roses a dose of organics early in the season to spur bacterial
life in the soil. Horse manure or an commercial organic formula
like Mills Magic will do the trick. You should also include your
favorite rose food at the same time.
2. Supply micronutrients. The
N, P, and K in your favorite 10-10-10 fertilizer isn’t enough. Roses
also need micronutrients, much like humans need vitamins. Ironite
makes an inexpensive fertilizer that supplies iron and needed micronutrients.
3. Feed often. Roses are heavy feeders. It takes a lot of energy
to make all those rose petals. Roses should be fed every 4-6 weeks
with organic compost that will loosen the soil. Start fertilizing
your roses when you have done your first pruning of the year.
Weed
Prevention:
Warm summer temperatures break down mulch quickly.
If your mulch is getting thin, now is a good time to put on a couple
of extra inches. Grass control can be achieved with Grass-B-Gone,
or Ornamec Over the Top - both will not harm roses if a little over
spray reaches the leaves. Have a problem with nutsedge? Manage will
kill the nutsedge while a little overspray will hot harm your roses.
Broadleaf weeds need to be pulled, or covered and smothered with
mulch.
Use Rose Care products to prevent disease:
Start your spray
program with your first pruning of the year.
Use a contact
fungicide:
These are compounds that kill the black spot fungus
as well as its spores on contact. Manzate and Mancozeb are two
of the more popular contact fungicides.
Use a systemic
fungicide:
These are compounds that prevent the germinating
black spot spore from taking hold on the leaf. While systemics
do not kill the spores, they do stop the fungus dead in its tracks
by interfering with its metabolism. The fungus can’t digest its
food and soon dies. Popular systemic fungicides include Banner
Max and Compass. Mixing a contact and systemic fungicide in the
same sprayer works well. By killing off spores and preventing
the growth of any existing fungus, black spot is quickly eradicated.
Although using both a systemic and a contact fungicide is the
key to controlling black spot, don’t make the mistake of using
the same systemic and contact fungicide each time you spray. Just
as bacteria have become increasingly immune to antibiotics, the
black spot fungus is becoming resistant to some of the compounds
used to control it. To ensure that an immunity does not develop
in your garden, switch off the fungicides you use each week. Here
is a list of some of the more common systemic and contact fungicides
that control black spot.
Contact
Fungicides
-
Mancozeb/Fore
-
Manzate/Maneb
-
Daconil
-
Captan
-
Copper
Sulfate
Systemic
Fungicides
-
Banner
Max
-
Compass
-
Clearys
3336F
-
Immunox
-
Triforine/Funginex
Caution:
All rose care products can be harmful if misused. Be sure to read
the label and follow instructions carefully.
Water:
Roses need lots of water during the summertime. A couple of
inches a week is a good guideline. Watering with a soaker hose or
drip line is preferred because moisture does not contact the leaves.
Over the top watering soaks the leaves leaving them susceptible
to fungus attack and washing off rose spray. Over the top watering
should be avoided if other options are available.
Consulting Rosarians
are expert rose growers who have passed an exam by the American
Rose Society. They are there to help you with your rose growing
problems at no cost to you.
If you have a question for one of our consulting rosarians, or
would like one of them to visit your garden, please
click on the "ask us a question" link near the top of this page.
Please include a short description of the problem you are having.
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Rose Society]
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Winners]
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