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Consulting Rosarian Report By Kathy
Guthrie
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Here
it is, July, and we are all supposed to be saying "Summer at
last!" Well, what happened? As a native San Franciscan, , I
certainly remember many "cold and foggy summers in San
Francisco". With our non-existent cold Spring, one would expect
that summer is coming soon. According to the TV News today, 2010 is
becoming the coolest Summer on record here for 10 years. All of this
weather change makes it even more important than ever that you keep an
eye on your rose bushes to keep them disease and insect free, and
provide you with the maximum number of blooms and enjoyment.
1.
It is just about impossible to overwater your roses in summer. Roses
LOVE water, and how much you give them has a lot to do with how high a
water bill you find acceptable. If your rose beds were prepared properly
in the Spring, you should have some kind of mulch covering your soil.
This will help keep the soil temperature even, cut down on watering, and
prevent weeds It is not too late to add additional mulch if you have not
done so. 2.
WHEN you water is important - early morning is best to prevent mildew.
Watering in the evening, with leaves sitting wet all night with our cool
Bay Area nights encourages mildew, which will spread quickly on a damp
bush. Mildew can be prevented by spraying with a product such as Ortho
Rose Pride Disease Control (formerly Funginex) with the active
ingredient Triforene. If you water, and spray in the morning, roses
have all day to dry off. Once mildew is visible, pick off the diseases
leaves, and change your watering habits immediately. Try to choose
disease resistant varieties that will do well in the Bay Area. In
July,also remove any yellowing leaves that have rust, blackspot, or are
just "finished". Make sure that Drip System emitters are not
clogged, so that each of your rose bushes is getting adequate water. 3.
Watch for insects , such as spider mites, leaf cutting bees
(holes in the leaves) and other sucking and chewing insects. It may be
necessary to spray for these also. Whether you use insecticidal soaps,
products such as Isotox, or other methods, be sure to check bushes
regularly. Having a small spray bottle or can of these products is handy
if you just see a few insects, and do not want to spray your whole
garden. Keep up on removing spent blooms (deadheading) to encourage new
roses on the bush. 4.
Most importantly, enjoy your roses, and time spent in the garden. I
recently added a new automatic hose winder to my garden. What a great
product! If you are tired of fighting kinked up hoses, dragging them
back and rewinding them, tripping over a hose while you are looking at
something else, or just having the garden look much neater, than this is
the item for you! No electricity or batteries are needed Just reel out
the hose, use it, and then walk over and flip to the rewind lever. Using
the water pressure in the hose, it neatly rewinds itself into its own
neat box near the faucet outlet. Costso, Home Depot and Lowe's have
them. Great for older people, the lazy, and ME1 It is about twice the
price of a regular hose reel, and worth every penny!
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Updated: 7/25/10