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Well, let me tell ya about them knockout roses and the troubles they get. You plant ’em thinkin’ they’re tough as nails, but even tough things get sick, ya know? Like us old folks, ha!
First off, there’s this thing called black spot. Sounds nasty, don’t it? And it is! It’s like the measles for roses, but way worse for ’em. You see these little black spots all over the leaves. Starts small, then gets bigger and bigger, ’til the whole leaf looks like it’s been peppered with soot. Don’t kill the rose right away, mind you, but it weakens it. Makes it look pitiful, like a stray dog with mange. The rose just ain’t happy, and it shows. It can’t make its food properly, see, ’cause the leaves ain’t workin’ right. And if it goes on long enough, well, the rose just gives up the ghost.
- The leaves get all yucky and fall off.
- Then the rose can’t grow strong.
- And then, no pretty flowers for ya!
Then there’s somethin’ called powdery mildew. Now, that’s a fancy name for somethin’ that looks like white flour sprinkled all over the leaves and stems. Makes ’em look dusty, like nobody bothered to clean ’em in years. It ain’t dirt, though. It’s a kinda mold, a fungus, you know? And it sucks the life right outta the rose. The leaves curl up, they get all twisted and weird lookin’. And the buds, the poor little buds, they might not even open up proper. Just shrivel up and die.
Another thing, and this one’s real strange, it’s called rose rosette disease. This one’s the devil, I tell ya. It makes the rose grow all wonky. The stems get thick and gnarly, like a witch’s fingers. And the leaves, oh, they get all small and crinkled up, and they turn this weird reddish color. Sometimes, you even see way too many thorns, more than normal. It’s like the rose is tryin’ to protect itself, but it’s too late. This disease, it’ll kill the rose sure as shootin’. There ain’t no cure for it, not that I know of. You gotta dig up the whole plant, roots and all, and burn it. Otherwise, it’ll spread to the other roses and you’ll lose the whole patch.
Now, them roses, they also get bothered by bugs. Lots of ’em. Aphids, them little green things, suck the sap right outta the stems and leaves. And Japanese beetles, them shiny green critters, they eat the leaves, makin’ ’em look like lace doilies. Then there’s mites, so tiny you can barely see ’em, but they do a whole lotta damage. And rose slugs, they ain’t slugs at all, but little green worms, they chew on the leaves, too. And them thrips, especially them chilli thrips, they’re bad news. They mess up everything, flowers, leaves, even the stems. They’re tiny, but they cause a heap of trouble, specially down south where it’s warm.
So, what do ya do? Well, you gotta keep an eye on your roses. Look at ’em every day, see if somethin’s amiss. If you see black spots, you gotta spray ’em with somethin’. There’s stuff you can buy at the store, or you can make your own with baking soda and water, believe it or not. And if you see that powdery mildew, same thing, gotta spray it. But if you see that rose rosette, well, there ain’t nothin’ for it but to dig it up and burn it. As for the bugs, there’s sprays for them too, or you can just pick ’em off by hand if you ain’t squeamish. And make sure your roses ain’t crowded, give ‘em some air, and water ’em at the roots, not on the leaves.
Keepin’ roses healthy ain’t easy, but it’s worth it. There ain’t nothin’ prettier than a rose bush full of blooms, ‘specially them knockout roses. They’re supposed to be tough, but even tough things need a little help now and then.
Tags: [roses, knockout roses, disease, black spot, powdery mildew, rose rosette, aphids, Japanese beetles, mites, rose slugs, thrips, plant care, gardening]
