You've found the famous Dave's Garden website! Join this friendly global community that shares tips and ideas for home and gardens, along with seeds and plants!
Check out the DG homepage for a brief overview of what you'll find in this gardening mega-site.
Login
If you don't have an account yet, visit the registration page to sign up.
I have some really great and huge rugosa roses that had branches dieing last year. Because they looked so bad, I would trim out that branch. I did not fertilize anything close to them although we are close to fields where there could have been some kind of crop overspray. If it is crop overspray, it didn't hurt anything else close. Not sure what is happening and they were so wonderfully lhealthy for years. Would it help to trim these monsters down to about a foot in the spring and give them a new start? Or, would I loose all my blooms? Kill them altogether? Or, should I be treating another problem in another way? I would really hate to loose these beautiful and fragrant roses. They are really one of the stand-bys of my yard out in the country where things can be harsh. Thanks for any help, Diane
You can take them back to about 18" from the ground now. You won't have the level of bloom this spring, but they'll keep on coming. I side dress mine with compost during the season. It sounds very likely they got hit with something nasty. Don't know who or what you're next too, but if they are spraying something that will hurt the roses it can't be good for you or your family either.
