I'm surprised to hear that. I'm down the coast from you, in Camarillo. We've had a foggy spring -- sort of like "the old days," and we've got mildew on a few non-mildewers.
But rust?
No.
Only a few touches on the older foliage of a few Hybrid Perpetual types.

No rust on any of our Tea Roses, Chinas, or Noisettes.
No rust on our Polyanthas. No rust on any of our few remaining Austins.

Are your roses on an automatic watering system? And if so, have you checked to see if it is functioning well? Because going short of water can trigger rust, sometimes.
If you are seeing rust where you normally do not, that could possibly be a factor.

Jeri Jennings
Santa Barbara & Ventura Co. Rose Societies
Heritage Roses Groups

I live in the SF Bay area, near the bay. None of my tea roses have rust. Neither do the polyanthas, chinas, noisettes, or hybrid musks. Neither do any of my miniatures, or modern ground cover roses.

In fact, the only roses I have that have even a tiny bit of rust are hybrid teas. Most of them have some.

In Santa Barbara, you should be able to grow teas, chinas, hybrid musks, polyanthas, and noisettes. If you look up Vintage Gardens web sites, you can find lists of those, and pictures of most of them.

Jackie

I'm by the coast, but in Orange County. I did have rust, but very early in the season. It was a long cool spring. My rust-buckets like Royal Highness and Barbra Streisand were covered in it. But now that it has warmed up, I'm not seeing it.

When a rose has rust, I cut off the affected leaves. They will grow back clean in a few weeks.

My problem now is huge grasshoppers, leaf hoppers and rose slugs!

The only rose that rusts for me is Zephirine Drouhin. I am used to it now:-). It hasn't been that bad this year for it. I have had mildew a bit, but no rust, other than ZD.

Masha

You guys are killing me! I thought everyone would be complaining about rust. Jeri, I will check the water. Drip system on a timer. The gophers have found my roses. Is it possible they have weakened the roses? The flowers look great though.
Eileen

I've had rust for the first time ever this year on Burgundy Iceberg and Our Lady of Guadalupe. I took off all the rusted leaves and watered the roses well and now there's hardly a sign of rust on them. I do have a lot of mildew which I've also never had. I don't spray but now that the weather has turned warmer I'm hopeful that will pass soon, and that the roses will recover on their own.

If your roses are prone to rust, would you be willing to give them up and try varieties that are more disease-free? Have you ever tried tea and china roses? They do seem to be easier to care for in our climate.

Ingrid

I'm with you, Eileen -- got buckets of rust this year, much more than most years (and even though I do regularly "nuke" the yard). So, nuking them didn't really help all that much -- especially once the rust is established. It's not bad now, but two months ago it was a nightmare -- one of my climbers (Valentine's Day) got it first and gave away free samples to every other rose within reach of a good gust of wind. I "repruned" the whole mess back down to nothing and put down new mulch under the rustiest plants and the whole yard has grown back more or less clean.

The ones that were never affected at all were Julia Child, Hot Cocoa, St. Patrick, Henri Matisse, Gardens of the World and Lovestruck.

It's almost time for the summer prune down anyway (which I usually do in August to control the size of the plants for fall) -- go for it now.

Kathy

The gophers have found my roses. Is it possible they have weakened the roses?

*** Most certainly. (I cannot say, tho, that they are a cause of the rust.)
We made the mistake recently of planting some things in the ground, and not in pots. Then a construction project started across the Lane, and all GopherH*ll broke loose.

They hit Leonie Lamesch and a found Mme. Lambard pretty hard, and those are just now catching up.
They ate every single bit of the roots of both of a pair of 'Jeri Jennings.' (We thought those were goners, but they have come back wonderfully.)

Having half or more of the roots eaten WILL weaken a plant, no doubt about it. That's why we've been forced to plant in pots in the ground.

However, that said, some things will rust.
Others won't.
We've had roses whose foliage rusted even as the new leaves unfolded. Gone.

Jeri

No rust here in my garden in San Diego. Powdery mildew a bit here and there. :(
Hey I am not counting rust out! lol I have a touch of a lot of things here. Might as well add some rust.
Oh yes, and as I am typing I hear a drummer in the next yard. I am about to back to the yard to work and I think I will be flicking thorns/prickles at him...minimum! Betcha don't have that!?
Fight the good fight TinyRose!

Allison

Sorry to hear of your rust problem, tinyrose. Here about 10% are rusty, the usual suspects like 'Abraham Darby', 'Day Breaker', and 'Marilyn Monroe'. 'Signature' which has been so clean for 5 or 6 years, is bad this year for the first time.

But July is imminent, the June Gloom is weakening and we are facing summer heat. Those rusty leaves will drop, the plant will grow new foliage, and everything will be good again--except for the heat, which is another story altogether.

The kid across the street was a drummer. He'd come home every day from high school and drum for a half hour starting at 3:15. I loathed it. But it's what got him through the emotional travails of high school, I think. He's grown up, started his own successful business, moved out on his own and has taken his drums with him. So that, too, has passed--like the Rust will.

Thanks to all your responses.

JERI & JACKIE- I knew when I put this garden in I should have included more teas, chinas, polys, etc. I just get seduced by the Austins. I'll be pulling some of those out along with some HTs. Looks like Grandmother's Hat is calling my name.

I have NO mildew. Isn't that weird? We are under a fog blanket as I type.

KATHY - one of my few rust survivors is Julia. What a perfect rose. I am going to check out your list on HMF. Thanks.

INGRID- Yes, I am willing and will pull out some of the roses and plant OGRs. I should have pulled the leaves off at the first sign of rust. I ignored it and within a week 500 roses had rust. I am slowly stripping the leaves, but what a chore.

HERSHGRL- I am steeling myself for the next wave of problems. I know the rose slugs, Katydids, grasshoppers etc are on their way.

ALLISON- You got a huge laugh out of me. Nothing would be worse than a drummer next door. I'd rather have rust.

Thanks to you all for your help. I am going out now to check drip system.

I didn't even mention the horrible rabbit problems we are having!
Eileen

Eileen, if you love your Austins, there are a few that neither rust nor mildew here.

Golden Celebration, Cymbaline, and Prospero all have very good resistance to rust and mildew in the Camarillo fog-belt. Prospero can get a touch of rust on its very oldest foliage, but that is quickly removed.

That said, Vintage Gardens presently offers:

International Herald Tribune
Mons. Tillier
Perle d'Or
Lady Ann Kidwell
Pie IX (Pius Ninth)

all of which might be good choices for you.

No one is presently offering "Grandmother's Hat," other than ANNIE'S ANNUALS. But my DH is propagating it for the Cemetery sale next Oct. and maybe for late fall donations to local rose societies.

Jeri

Jeri -- International Herald Tribune rusts badly here, just FYI.

Allison -- the easiest way to "strip the leaves" is to prune. The plants really don't mind an extra pruning at all and in this warmth will come back much quicker than for the winter prune.

Kathy

Now, THAT is odd Kathy.
I know a great many people who grow IHT, and I've never before heard a rust report on it.

Jeri

The Santa Barbara area has experienced one of the worst cases of "May Gray" and "June Gloom" that I've seen in the 22 years I've lived here. For those not in coastal So Calif, those are our code names for the sometimes unrelenting fog that can plague us in May and June (and sometimes into the summer). Anyway, it has been exceptionally bad this year. The last really hot weather we had, with hot winds, was around May 5-7, when we had our most recent fire. Even people who live up on the pass have had the unrelenting fog recently (Eileen knows where I'm talking about, and they are usually above the fog far up in the foothills). So my point to Eileen is to realize that this has been a particularly bad two month patch of weather for us in terms of fog. I have roses that have rust now that normally never have it at this time of year, and I have a moderate to severe case of powdery mildew on pretty much all of the PM susceptible ones. It will pass. Just deadhead the affected roses really hard, and pull off the leaves with rust. Cut off all of the PM'd new growth. Modern HTs and FLs grow really well here, most without any additional help. But there are excellent safe fungicides like Compass and Banner Maxx that will pretty much prevent all of this. I usually spray these, but this year got too busy and did not do so since my initial spraying in March. It has been an interesting lesson in who is the most susceptible with no help. I already knew the usual suspects, b/c I am not as devoted as I should be to spraying, but seeing them completely unaided has been interesting. One other thing you should do is to overhead water them in the heat of the day in full sun... this helps a lot with powdery mildew.

Susan

I live in North San Diego County. No rust here. I have quite a bit of powdery mildew, the worse ever.

If I remember to do a wintertime post-pruning drench with Cooke's Kop-R-Spray, it reduces spring problems with fungus, including rust. It's too late in the season now, but you might want to try that next year.

I'm on the coast, like you, so if a variety is rust-prone in my garden I offer it to rosy friends who live inland.

Two varieties that have been healthy here for years are the shrub rose Cocktail, and the grandiflora Roundelay (which has that Austin look -- link below to photos).

Here is a link that might be useful: Roundelay

Hi Jeri - I too have gopher problem. I was wondering if you plant in large pots then sink the entire pot into the ground. And do you make the drain holes bigger? Every suggestion is much appreciated.

Kasie

Hi Kasie -- Yes, we do exactly as you describe.
For the most part, we're using 15-G nursery containers, though we have had a few 20-G's.
We add MANY extra holes.
DH uses a 3/4-inch drill bit to drill the bottom of the pot (and a few inches up the side) as full of holes as Swiss Cheese.
Gophers have never gotten through one of these, but the anchor roots do eventually make their way out.
Is it an ideal way to grow roses?
No, it is not.
But if you are as badly afflicted by gophers as we are, it's the ONLY way we can grow roses.

The good news is that, for the first few years, you can easily change your mind about location, wedge the thing out of the ground, scoot it onto a dolly, and move it to a more congenial location.

Jeri

I am just inland enough that I don't really have to deal with the marine layer phenom. But boy we did really have "june gloom" this year. Overcast everyday. Not the norm for sure. I can imagine having to deal with the marine layer has been very frustrating gardening wise. For people who don't live here, usually it "burns off" early in the day and it is less humid saving our gardens.

Tinyrose, update on the drummer. It turned out it was a whole band. They played from 5pm till 8:30pm. They couldn't sing, didn't know one song all the way thru, and could not play the instruments well. It was a group of older kids, christian youth, staying out of trouble on a Saturday.....how could I be upset! Oh, I was!!!! Kept it to myself and tried not to channel my negative energy into my roses :-P I work out in the yard 'till it gets dark because it's cooler and less sun. Anyway, I much preferred the quiet older woman that lived there by herself. The son in law moved his whole family in this little house and has built illegal buildings in the wayback (which is where our yards meet), one for his teenager to live in! Arrrg! There is so much movement and "upgrading" going on with power tools, it's awful. Power tools at night and earrrrly morning. Thank you I needed to get that off my chest. I have a 1/4 acre parcel, zoning doesn't allow multiple dwellings. So this sucks. But hey, my yard is coming along great! And no rust (yet). lol All I need is a fast growing giant hedge at the bottom of my property. One that will grow like 15' in 2 weeks!

Petaloid, thanks for the heads up on the roses. Roundelay is beautiful!

Susan9SB, glad you made it thru the nasty fire. My sister did also. Touch and go for a while....scary.

Allison

Thank you very much Jeri.

Kasie

Wow, I can always count on answers from my California rose friends. You are the best. Funny stories (drummers etc), and great advise. Must go, see bunnies in rose garden. Grrrr.
Eileen
tinyrose

I'm in Camarillo and dealing with quite a bit of BS, but little to no rust.

It WAS a foggy spring...but no rain!

Oswald -- Blackspot?
Are you SURE?

Because if what you have is blackspot, you must have roses that are particularly susceptible to it.

Here in Camarillo, I would more likely suspect that you have something like anthracnose, cercospora, or downy mildew.
While blackspot is a rare visitor to Camarillo, anthracnose, cercospora, and downy mildew are fairly common -- and those diseases are frequently mistaken here for blackspot.

Ventura County Rose Society meets tonight (6-29) at the Education building on Adolfo Rd., here in Camarillo. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., meeting starts at 7:30 p.m.
Bring some of your problem foliage, and show it to the Consulting Rosarians present.

Jeri

Hmm, worse than a drummer next door? Someone I know had a bagpipe player next door. Now I happen to like bagpipe music but it's not everyone's cup of tea. And even I would not like to hear it next door in a close-built neighborhood.

My own experience is that rust is a problem that is worse in spring and fall. In the midst of summer only susceptible roses seem to suffer from it. I do remember though that on the El Niño year about 10-12 years ago, all the roses had it, pretty much all summer long. It may just be that you are experiencing a local pocket of rust-inducing conditions this year. Someone twenty miles away may not have the same things going on that you are.

Rosefolly

Tinyrose, maybe you could put a bale of hay next to your rose garden? The bunnies love Alfalfa hay! It's like chocolate ice cream to them! Just a thought :-)
Allison

Jeri - wish I could, but we have family in town for a funeral. I am definitely planning to attend the next one, though.

I spent most of last two weeks plucking the affected foliage and spraying - I just went out to examine my 26 icebergs and was only able to find ONE leaf with what I think is BS. I'd love to hear your opinion - I am newer to roses so I definitely could be wrong.
{{gwi:294805}}

Well, you're right.
That's blackspot.

I think Rosefolly's points are right on target, though.
And I think that we're about at the end of our extra-long foggy spring.
The advance of drier, warmer summer air will probably solve this problem.
BTW, I've never seen Iceberg blackspot in this area.
To me, there's a huge difference between a disease problem that occurs once in several years, and a disease problem that is a constant annoyance.
I can tolerate the former.
I refuse to keep the latter in my garden.

Jeri

Yes, I thought it was :)

Really, the issue is clearing up. I have been diligent about removing affected foliage and spraying like crazy.

I thought Iceberg was resistant to BS, but apparently not...

I've been thinking about that.
I don't know whether Iceberg is generally resistant to blackspot, but I do know that
blackspot has rarely made much headway in Southern CA.
When it's been warm enough for blackspot, it's been to dry for it to flourish.
And when it's been humid, it's been too cold.
Yet, here you are in Camarillo where it hasn't gotten out of the 60's for weeks upon weeks, and you have blackspot.

I hope this does not herald the emergence of a strain of the fungus that likes chill and fog!

(BTW -- the rest of SoCal is heating up, but DH just remarked that, though the sun is out, it is 69 deg. in mid-afternoon in Camarillo.)

Jeri

In the East, 'Iceberg' is notoriously susceptible to blackspot-- also to Cercospora spot disease. It had (note verb tense) to be sprayed constantly. Sorry you guys are having trouble with that. You have your own proper diseases to worry about.

Sorry you guys are having trouble with that. You have your own proper diseases to worry about.

*** Precisely! It doesn't seem fair!
But really, for the most part, Iceberg is so clean here that it is used as gas station landscaping.

Jeri

The variations in microclimates along the So Calif coast are measured in single miles from the coast. At least that's the case in the Santa Barbara area. I'm 1.5 miles from the coast as the crow flies, and my area is way better in terms of fog than at the airport (almost on the coast, and directly south of me). Go another mile inland where you start to get some slight elevation, and it's very different. Go even another mile inland, and it's significantly different b/c you're really staring to climb in altitude. Anyway, my point is that the Santa Barbara area has extremely different microclimates, which has a huge impact on what you experience for growing conditions.

Susan