Follow these tips to reduce unsightly black spot on your roses
Black spot is a fungal disease exacerbated by warm, wet weather and is extremely difficult to control. It shows itself as black spots over the leaves and sometimes the stems also. It is unsightly and can lead to the complete defoliation of your roses. It rarely actually kills the plant but it does leave it severely weakened so it will need a good feed and making sure it is kept well watered.
Follow the video where Mark shows you how to prune out the black spot
You will need:
- secateurs
- Rose Clear
The spores are spread by water so don’t water overhead, water at the base of the plant, as watering overhead just spreads the spores from the top of the plant to lower down.
If you only have a slight infestation, pull the infected leaves off and destroy them by burning or putting in the grey bin. Spray with a fungicide such as Rose Clear to try and prevent it recurring; it won’t cure once you have the disease.
If the plant is badly affected cut out any stems, with infected leaves or patches on the stems, back to a node further down the stem.
Try and prevent the infection by tidying away any leaves in the autumn and destroying. Spray with a fungicide in late spring/early summer to try and prevent infection.
There are some rose varieties which are more resistant than others, but this will only be for a few years as more varied black spot strains arise.
