I doubt apple is affected by TMV. But even if it is it won't be spread via soil or mulch. I believe on tomatoes it's spread by thrips.

First, what sort of symptoms did your plants have? And second, you -- and the folks in Chanticleer -- need to know that the virus isn't in the soil. As to which green manure is well suited to your region, call your county's Extension Service office and ask the Master Gardeners. Or ask at a nearby independent garden center or farm store.

When plants are grown in unsuitable environments, including conditions of faulty mineral nutrition, they react to the particular defects in more or less specific ways. Thus, if light is insufficient, the green coloring matter of the leaf will be lacking and the leaves may be almost white (chlorotic), and the plant may be very spindly and "drawn" in appearance; if the temperature is too high, the growth may be rank and soft; if water is insufficient, growth may be restricted, the tissues woody and the green of the leaves show a bluish tint. Again, deficiencies and excesses of the individual elements produce characteristic effects on various organs of plants: foliage characters, including color, density, size and shape of leaves; stem characters, such as thickness, color and length of inter-nodes; root characters, such as color, amount of fiber, abnormal thickening; blossom characters, including amount and time of opening of the flowers; fruit characters, such as size, color, hardness and flavor.

Has it been found in the U.S.? Many/most U.S. gardeners see a virused rose and call it rose mosaic virus. The term Rose Mosaic Virus is not an actual virus name. It is a group name for viruses that give mosaic symptoms on roses. To determine which virus is giving the observed symptoms, the diseased rose must be tested. "Title: Roses: virus and virus-like diseases. Author: Lisa-V Published in: Colture-Protette. 1998, 27: 5 Supplement, 35-38; 14 ref. Language of article: Italian Abstract: "Notes are given on the viruses and virus-like diseases that are known to affect roses around the world. The most common and widespread virus disease is rose mosaic, associated especially with prunus necrotic ringspot ilarvirus (PNRSV), apple mosaic ilarvirus (ApMV), arabis mosaic nepovirus (ArMV) and strawberry latent ringspot nepovirus (SLRV), but also with tobacco ringspot nepovirus, tobacco streak ilarvius and tomato ringspot nepovirus. Tobacco mosaic tobamovirus and an unidentified closterovirus are found sporadically. The virus-like diseases of unknown aetiology include rose ring pattern, rose flower break, rose streak, rose rosette (or rose witches' broom), rose leaf curl, rose spring dwarf and rose wilt. Other disorders are caused by hormonal imbalances or other types of incompatibility between the graft and the rootstock of unknown aetiology, such as rose bud proliferation, rose dieback (or rose stunt) and frisure. Techniques for diagnosing viruses in roses and methods for their control are described." http://www.cabdirect.org/abstracts/19981005603.html --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- There was an early (1962) paper that reported tomato ringspot virus infection in U.S. roses (Google Scholar does not reach back that far. More recent papers questioned their results.) http://scholar.google.com/scholar?start=10&q=%22TOMATO+ringspot+virus%22+roses&hl=en&as_sdt=0,36 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The name given to a virus can be misleading. It is mainly of historical interest and does not indicate the wide range of plants that that virus can infect. For example, Tomato Ringspot Virus can infect many types of weeds (including dandelion). http://www.apsnet.org/publications/plantdisease/backissues/Documents/1984Articles/PlantDisease68n03_242.pdf --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tomato ringspot virus is in the genus Nepovirus which normally are considered to be nematode transmitted viruses. However there are instances where tomato ringspot virus transmission is thought to be more complex: "Transmitted by a vector; a nematode (and also, non-specifically by insects and mites - Aphis gossypii, Myzus persicae, Melanopus sp. Epitrix hirtipennis, Thrips tabaci (possibly nymphs) and Tetranychus sp.); Xiphinema americanum; Dorylamidae. Virus lost by the vector when it moults; does not multiply in the vector; not transmitted congenitally to the progeny of the vector; does not require a helper virus for vector transmission; transmitted by mechanical inoculation; not transmitted by contact between plants; transmitted by seed; transmitted by pollen to the seed." http://pvo.bio-mirror.cn/descr809.htm Note, the above are possible modes of transmission based on observation with other plants, the actual mode of transmission in roses has not been determined.