The Roses on the shelves here at Roses inc. Tulsa are in full bloom and it is hard to believe that just six weeks ago they were struggling just to bloom.  So it goes in A Year in the Life of a Rose.  Yes it is that time again.  I may be crippled but I am not dead so the seminar must go on.  This is our 10th year to hold the A Year in the Life of a Rose Seminar  and as always the Seminar is Free for all who would like to attend.  If you would like to eat with us the meal will cost $5.00 per person to help cover the price of the food.  Lunch is from noon until 12:45 with the Seminar beginning then and going until 5:00 p.m.  The Seminar will happen rain or shine so bring a chair and plan to join us for a great afternoon of fun and learning about the Queen of flowers.  Please RSVP to me at astelljes@cox.net by October 19 so I can have enough food and handouts for all who are in attendance.  There will be multiple door prizes and a special part of the program on the identification of Rose Rosette Disease.  For more information please call  918-455-7673.

  Education is our first line of defense

 

Rose Rosette Disease is not new to roses but it has gone from the occasional irritation to a constant threat since the introduction of the Double Knock Out Rose.

It is my opinion, and my experience has bore it out, that the Double Knock Out Rose is much more susceptible to the Rosette disease than many of the roses that we have been growing for years.  The epidemic has reached such levels that there are now multiple Universities working to identify the diseases cause and spread.  Some in academia are even cautioning against planting the Double Knock Out until more can be learned.  All the while the Company who introduced the rose is ramping up efforts to market the rose as the no care alternative to rose culture.  Millions upon millions of these plants are being sold and used in landscapes all over the country.  I have first hand information from calls made to me from dozens of growers in multiple states that the problem is not restricted to our area but to many other states.  One grower in Texas I talked with had hundreds in his crop with the disease.

 

What can we do to help this situation?  We must educate our friends and neighbors about the disease.  We must state the obvious that anywhere you go where Double Knock Out Roses have been in the garden scapes for more than 4 years have evidence of the disease.  Some garden scapes like the one at Saint John's South in Broken Arrow have been there for considerably less than 4 years and have the disease running rampant among their Double Knock Outs.  It is my belief that these early outbreaks can be attributed to the disease being carried from location to location by means of infected hedge trimmers wielded by landscapers with little or no knowledge of the disease. 

 

The bottom line is that we can continue to grow roses and not have to fight reoccurring outbreaks of Rosette disease by elliminating DKO roses from our neighborhoods.  We can plant only rose varieties that are not as susceptible to Rosette Disease and share our knowledge with everyone we know who grows roses.  Many Rose varieties exist and can be obtained through reputable nurseries that recognize the Rosette disease and the roses most often infected by it.  Roses inc. Tulsa quit carrying Double Knock Out roses several years ago when the problem became evident to us. 

 

If you need further information about Rose Rosette Disease please fill free to contact us.  We are available to talk with Garden Clubs, Neighborhood organizations, Landscape Contractors or the neighbor who is unwittingly harboring the disease.  Together we can clean up this mess and continue growing the Queen of Flowers as we have in the past. 

 

Cucumber beetle                         

 

 

Nope, it is not a Lady Bug!  This critter eats Roses.  It loves the succulent petals of the flowers.  Especially the light colored ones.

 

For control you can pick them off and squeeze them between your fingers and watch the green ooze squirt out or use Acephate, Malathion, or Sevin.

 

The dot in the middle is a yard stick pushed to the ground

  Assure wintering success

 

If we could count on big snows like this one we would never have to worry about our roses in the cold of Winter.  Since we can't than lets do the following.

 

Stop fertilizing now:  If you have been lax with getting your roses fertilized than you have one week to stop.  Do not use a time release this late in the season.

 

Stop Dead Heading:  Let the current flowers set hips so the bush can start it's natural progression to dormancy.  If you must cut flowers than leave some of the older ones to mature.

 

Spray:  Continue to apply pesticide at 2 to 3 week intervals until the first hard freeze.  The bushes need to be free of disease and bugs going into the winter.

 

Clean Up:  Remove all diseased litter from the ground under the bushes.  A leaf blower is a good tool to do this chore.

 

Prune:  Remove only dead and diseased canes from the bush.  Wait until Spring to do your major pruning.  The top of the bush will help protect the bottom from the winter wind and cold.

 

Spread Manure:    If you've got it, spread it.  The fall is a great time to put down natures fertilizer.  It will be in place and ready to go to work when the warmth of Spring arrives.

 

The best time to plant shrubs and trees

 

 Rose Planting time is here!  Roses just like other shrubs are best planted in the fall.  The reason more roses are available in the Spring has everything to do with the producers bottom line and nothing to do with what is best for the bush. 

 

Rose bushes planted in the Fall grow roots for most if not all of the Winter months here in Oklahoma.  This means that when Spring arrives they are ready to flourish.

 

The only concern that once was a problem was rose selection.  Roses inc. Tulsa has solved this concern with more than 400 rose varieties in bloom and ready for your garden.

 

Come out and let the friendly and knowledgeable staff at Roses inc Tulsa help you design the rose garden of your dreams.  We are open from 8a.m. until 10 a.m. every day and all day on Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays until after my fourth and (I hope) finial knee surgery.