I haven't had blackspot issues with the rugosas I have grown, but every rose I have grown that has bloom past June or so has had Japanese beetles and/or rose chafers. I usually choose once blooming roses so that I don't have to deal with picking bugs, since the blossoms are most often ruined (I won't spray roses or anything else for that matter.)

Ratdogheads, I'm in Portland, OR, so my info won't be the most helpful, but here Rugosas are what I'd call blackspot free. The less rugose ones are a bit more prone to BS. Wrinkly seems to indicate resistance here. There are beetles in our area but gardens which do not struggle with infestations do not seem to suffer more with Rosa rugosa additions. Rugosa rows do make a nice hedge. Thorny and invasion discouraging. Carol

Hello
I am new here and am wanting to try my hand at rosa ragosa rose cuttings. Does anyone have some they are willing to trade me? I have oh so many tomato seeds I could share, multiplying onions to share, dew berry cuttings, or just let me know what your looking for and I will see if I have seeds.

As a general rule of thumb, the ones close to the species (very rugose leaves) have the highest blackspot resistance.

Japanese beetles seem to like all roses. Based on observation years ago, I would say that rugosas are favorites.

Folly

I am in southwestern NH, and have great luck with every rugosa and rugosa hybrid I have tried. A particularly healthy and sturdy one for hedging would be Polareis. I have one, a giant specimen that easily tops 10 feet, and survived this brutal winter with very little cane loss. And it blossoms early and often. One early December a few years ago, during a mild week after several killing frosts, I found a cluster of buds! They didn't quite open all the way, but you get the idea.
Never any bs on any of my rugosas.
JB's, however - my solution has been allowing my dozen hens to do a few hours of yard patrol in late spring and early summer. Supervised, because otherwise they dust bathe some of the smaller plants into oblivion, and of course the predators are just lurking in the woods. But ever since the hen patrol, I have had few (six one year) or NO JB's.

My experience may not be very helpful given that my zone equivalent is 9. However, I have one rugosa in my rose garden and it has the most wonderful perfume - it's a white variety called 'Gufo della Neve' (Snowy Owl is the translation, I think) - Anyhow, it is completely free of BS when almost all my other roses (with the exception of the David Austin 'Queen of Sweden') are all very badly affected and are in close proximity to the rugosa.

Unfortunately, it is a magnet for those horrible flying bugs that live in the soil and come out during Spring - here they call them 'maggiolini' which should suggest that they're only active in May, however, last year they were active for months - right through the Summer. The bugs are black with little white spots - I think they may be rose chafers.

When I was complaining about these bugs at my local nursery I was told not to worry because they only attacked light coloured roses - so maybe the solution is to get a rugosa with a dark flower?

Cheers
Tricia