I have two orange HT roses that I bought about 16 years ago at Wal-Mart that have RMV. It was before I knew anything about roses, and I don't even remember their names. However, they are both very healthy and very profilic bloomers; never get BS, and come through the winter without any protection. I think it must depend on the rose itself.
RMV hasn't slowed these two down at all; they just get better with age.

It bothers me enough that I try to buy roses from mail order rose specialists who grow their roses in a way that avoids RMV. Having said that, I'm not sure how much RMV matters on the whole. I hate seeing weird looking leaves, but that's me. It frustrates me, but at the same time I know weird looking leaves don't necessarily mean the rose will die or even suffer very much.

If I was growing roses to compete in exhibitions, maybe I'd feel differently, but I don't do that.

I have had a Sharifa Asma for going on 6 years now that has rmv. I mostly notice the patterned leaves only in spring--it doesn't seem to show any symptoms later in the summer. The rose is at least as hardy as the rest of the DAs and blooms and reblooms as well as the others.

I don't worry about it, and I guess I won't be removing it or replacing it unless it dies someday.

RMVed roses are not allowed in my garden. Of course in many cases RMV will not show until many years later, so I try to buy only from reliable in their approach to virus sources. It doesn't give me garantee, but reduces my chances to get RMVed plants. Wnen any rose in my garden shows signes of RMV, I SP it. I know that available information about virus trsansfer through roots, insects or equipment is controversial, but I know enough about viruses and plants to suspect that in certain conditions and with certain vector the contamination will be happen. We all free to make our choices. My choice is to have a healthy garden :)
Olga

I have sadly watched my precious Marie Bugnet, a beautiful white rugosa, decline each year due to RMV. She has been in my garden for 8 years and for the first 5 was the first to bloom and continued to bloom with great profusion all summer and way into fall. Eventually, she will die. Each spring there is more winter kill, each year there are fewer new basal breaks. She keeps chugging because she is a good cultivar, a tough sister, but even she will eventually die. It breaks my heart.

I would replace her if I could be sure the next MB would be RMV free. I bought her as a beginning gardener, knowing nothing about roses and next to nothing about gardening. The vendor is no longer in business.

I've had other RMV roses that performed much more poorly than MB and they are gone or on their way out.

Vendors who sell RMV infected roses knowingly should be boycotted. That's MHO.

One of the things about it is that over time their vigor will decrease, and eventually you will have to replace them. However, in the short term, if you don't show your roses, it should not be a problem. Just try, in future, to buy roses that are guarenteed not to have it.

I just shovel pruned a Touch of Class with RMV. It came with the house--I think it was pretty old--there were two canes coming off a bud union two inches apart from each other--this was five years ago when it was transplanted.

The RMV did two things--it made it the BS magnet of our garden. It also made the leaves look funny--not good since I like to exhibit.

But, with a regular spray program, it thrived--going from a sickly plant with two 1 ft canes to a large plant with many 4 foot canes. It also survived a number of harsh winters in CT.

I also have a Peace from Wayside Gardens that has never shown any signs of a virus in 4 years--so far I know how to ID ApMv, RMV, and one that shows up as partial white patches on the leaves.

Yes, the diseases lumped in Mosaic bother me.
For the reasons described above.

And for two more.
For proven decrease in bloom production under optimum conditions.
Because root to root transmission of RMV was shown to happen within six months in a study published last year.
To read the abstract go to the link below to the RMV paper by Golino, et al.

Here is a link that might be useful: The Acta Hort book

Scarey, Ann. Thanks.
Barbara

Yes. I try to buy from vendors who work to eliminate same and any bush so infected, gets dug up and burned. Not going to spend time, compost, alfalfa meal, etc. on a bush that will decline instead of improve. I'm not going to risk the spread to healthy bushes.

I planted roses in rows. Do you mean I have to replace all the roses infected with RMV at the same time, otherwise the healthy replacements will infect soon if I plant next to the infected--but not dead yet bushes?

To answer your question, "Does Mosaic Disease bother you?"
NO! I can live with the varigated leaves and have not noticed any loss of vigor or blooms due to RMV in my gardens. I do not remove or replace a virused rose.

I do not keep any roses infected with Rose Mosaic Disease in my garden. They never perform as well, and are never as healthy as those that are not infected. They also tend to have short life spans. I get very angry at nurseries that knowingly keep propagating infected stock for sale. It's totally unethical and irresponsible. As far as I'm concerned, they are ripping people off. I would rather do without a rose than to buy one that has virus.

It is spread by either grafting an infected scion onto rootock, or by using infected rootstock for grafting the scion onto. Once infected, any cuttings taken from the rose will also be infected. It can only be cleaned up with a heat treating process called indexing.

It is generally thought that it cannot be spread from plant to plant with pruners or by insects. There is a possibility that there can be some contamination through the ground through root grafting. However, there is a doctor that I have spoken to, through an Eliza lab that I have used for testing, that believes there is still a chance of contamination by leaving the roses in the ground. His advice was to remove the roses involved, and to get as much of the roots that I could out of the ground for dispoasl.

Not everyone wants to remove their roses even if infected, as the chances for cross contamination are very slim, but I will never take a chance and leave an unhealthy speciman in the ground. Keep in mind that a rose can be infected and never show leaf symptoms. They usually are not very healthy roses though. It is absolutely amazing to see how a non-infected rose performs compared to the same exact one that is infected.

I don't feel you need to overwhelm yourself and rush out and remove all your bushes in a frenzy. I feel you should demand a refund from wherever you purchased the roses. When it comes time to get more roses, and as you have the time and energy to replace them, a reputable nursery will tell you if the rose in question has been tested and certified clean, and/or has been virus indexed (heat treated). I think you will be happier in the long haul if you plant as many healthy roses as possible.

I would like to mention that heat treating cannot be done at home. It is a very specialized and controlled (and lengthy) process.

Good luck. I feel very strongly about the sale of virused roses. I've been the unhappy recipient of many. Even with several of them being refunded, it did not compensate me for all the work involved, or my time.

sandy

Same answer as Karl. I've been happy with rmv infected roses for 40+ years. I see no reason to be bothered by it now. Some people think our roses are healthy.