Cecile Brunner, brown spotting on canes

13 years ago

I live in western WA and have had my Cecile Brunner in the ground for about 18 months now. It had beautiful flowers last year, but quite a lot of black spot on the leaves (which I was told this rose was not prone to). Yesterday I was tying up some of the canes (thankfully I have a huge support because this is going to be BIG) and saw that most of the canes have large brown spots. I don't know if "spots" is the right word because they're not round--just areas throughout the cane that are dark brown and look rather textured, whereas the green parts of the cane are smooth.

The only other rose I have experience with is my Autumn Sunset climbing rose which I've had for 5 years and have never had black spot and the canes are different colors based on age, but pretty uniform color from the bottom of each cane to the top.

Is what I'm describing normal for a Cecile Brunner? If not, and if this is just an extension of the black spot problem I had last summer on the leaves, is there anything I can do about it? The rose seems to be thriving in every other way.

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Comments (3)

hoovb zone 9 sunset 23
13 years ago
Downy mildew? (See image at link)

Here is a link that might be useful: image of downy mildew on canes
beckbunch
Original Author
13 years ago
Yes! That's it! I'm not encouraged by the advice given on the link though---to prune with a shovel!

Anything at all that works with downy mildew?? I love the flowers on this rose and would hate to lose it!
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Having had a couple moves experiences moving roses, this is what I think: I suggest that, with a very large plant like CB, that you take out, to the bud union, the largest, oldest canes, saving a minimum of last year's canes. (Better to do it now, than after you dig it up and find your darling CB in shock and wilting.) ie, if you have 10 canes, cut out at least 5 of the largest, oldest canes, and anything that isn't perfectly healthy. Don't worry, you could cut off all the canes to the bud union, and assuming the plants needs are met, it would come back fine. So be brave - cut off lots. Don't fertilize. Seal the cuts and give it at least a few days to recover. Then dig it up, digging far from the plant, and wrapping burlap around the root ball as you dig down, securing it with twine so that dirt doesn't fall from the roots as you move it from ground to container. The burlap will make it easier to transfer to the new spot as well. Keep it watered, and protect from wind or too much sun in transport. This way you will avoid much of the risk of severely weakening your mature plant, which opens the door to disease, and a downward spiral. This way you will at least get some bloom, and maybe lots as roses often will bloom like crazy after being thinned out. CB is so vigorous, she'll probably come back guns-a-blazin' after a successful move. Good luck! -Gala
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That is interesting, I am in the California East Bay Area and have been pruning to my eye and leaf-strip often. Anything I do not like I remove. I am very new to the world of roses so every success is a lovely accident. I loved him saying to get intimate with your roses and learn their indivisuality. I have been feeling that more and more- what I do may not work but I begin to find what is better and continue in that direction. Maybe lots of us are afraid of growing roses because of all the 'rules' and they differ for each type, like computers, we fear some devastating catastrophy. The longer I share our land with roses the more I appreciate how forgiving of my mistakes they can be, and my pc simply forces me to learn more, nothing horrific, frustrating but learn and go on. I do not find his guidance fearful but more open to learn in your own garden. He makes instruction fun! And of course you already picked up that I am not roses in a row but love weaving them together. I'm surprised how the simple drawing are quicker to understand than photographs, no distractions from the idea expressed. Bill, I am so grateful for this excellent book and I paid for it so I can underline, highlight, get it dirty and let it live in my garden with me for quick reference and/or inspiration! I would love to watch him prune! I'm dyslexic and reading is work, you have given me my favorite book. Thanks.....
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I agree with Campanula - it sounds as though your plant is the smaller version, not the climber. I've got the shrub, in a container. I've had it for about two years, and it's very healthy - it has started showing a lot of blooms this year, and it's growing well. It's crisping a bit in the hottest part of the summer here (Sacramento), but so are my other roses - they get only afternoon sun, which starts about one p.m., the worst. I've read in the Vintage Gardens catalog that CB will tolerate some shade, so I have thought about moving her pot to a shadier spot, but that spot is already occupied by a rose that needs it more. I would say that Cecile is a girl who is pretty happy wherever I put her. She grows and blooms, no matter what. Your climate is quite different, of course. But even in California, I did not find her to be one that hits the ground running - she grew, she was healthy, from the beginning, but nothing rampant. If she seems healthy apart from not blooming, I would give her some more time - or, as Campanula suggested, put her in a pot and try placing it in a different exposure for awhile. Either way, I would see what she does next Spring before making any rash decisions.
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OK - I have always wondered about CB. I bought the climber, and it has acted as expected - huge, tall (25 ft+), and re-blooms mostly this month. We have an old old bush of what I think is the "regular" one - gets maybe 6 feet tall here. Then, there is the REALLY old one - pics below. This is one bush. Second pic when it is not blooming, with my DH for size comparison. When they discovered (by DNA comparison) that the rose in commerce as "Bloomfield Abundance" was actually a Cecile Brunner, and named it 'Spray Cecile Brunner', I thought this might be that, because it is so big. However, I don't remember seeing those tall bloom sprays sticking out of the top of it, so I have been told that it is not SCB. Any thoughts? It was planted, we think, at least 90 years ago. Jackie
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kimberlyjames_msn_com
13 years ago
Corn meal is the easiest and most full-proof method of getting rid of blackspot, powdery mildew and even the more serious and debilitating downey mildew. 3 cups regular cornmeal you bake/cook with at the base of each mature size rose - fluff it in the dirt and water the cornmeal in.

There's something in the corn meal that will encapsulate mold spores. A fun way to experiment with the effectiveness of this "fix" is to leave all affected leaves on a plant, hit the surrounding soil with corn meal, and watch all new growth come in perfect, healthy and green. It's an amazing show of how well it works and usually impresses even non-gardeners. Corn meal used in spring and a time or two (when you start noticing a problem again with the plant; usually a couple months or longer) will keep the problem from appearing at all.

Turns out this works on downey mildew very well. In a yard where several roses had completely died to this fungus, I used heavy doses of corn meal in the fall. We weren't sure how it would work on such a notorious disease, but this spring all growth is very healthy and not a trace of powdery mildew even with the warm days/cool nights of spring.

The cornmeal you want is the baking/cooking kind, but you can find this much less costly at an agricultural feed store in 40 or 50 pound bags - split it with a buddy or just keep it 'round to use a couple of times a year if need be. The great thing about corn meal is when you see a problem starting again, you just add a bit more to the dirt.

Cecile Brunner, brown spotting on canes

Comments (3)

hoovb zone 9 sunset 23

beckbunch
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Cecile Brunner, brown spotting on canes

Comments (3)

hoovb zone 9 sunset 23

beckbunchOriginal Author

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kimberlyjames_msn_com

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beckbunch
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