I am not sure if I posted on your question about Downy Mildew, but Mancozeb/Manzate will NOT handle this problem. I took advice from a CR and professor of horticulture and ordered the Aliette (overnight, with the extra expense). I lost 2 roses but saved the rest of the bed. This is nothing like Powdery Mildew although many posters here have confused them. This is a potential killer.

This is why people should never read medical texts. Pretty soon, you convince yourself that you have every disease mentioned. Baldo should be helpful with this, but I can tell you that the marks of downy mildew are more commonly bordered by the veins in the leaf, so that you get something of a Stained Glass effect (of course, eventually the leaf DOES turn yellow and fall off). On the canes, the discolorations are most commonly a sort of purple-ish color, darkening to black, and eventually becoming necrotic. I'm not saying it's not possible -- but from our experience here, I think it is unlikely. But -- just suppose it WAS downy mildew. Would that be a death sentence for the plant? Not necessarily. When, in the early 90's (I think) we did have downy mildew here, we rushed out and bought the recommended chemical. It was to be used as a drench. Extremely powerful stuff! You used about a tablespoon-full in something like 30-G water. The stuff melted the surface of the plastic measuring spoon, and the first roses we used it on died very quickly. We then re-thought the problem, and in the end used what the avocado farmers here were doing for the closely-related fungal organism that causes avocado root rot. Fresh manure, piled around the infected plant, out to the drip line. THAT brought the situation under control. I suppose it WILL always remain in the plant, but the plants appeared to strengthen to the point where they were able to fight off the effects. And I'd far rather deal with a little horse poo, than with a chemical that melts plastic spoons. Jeri

Thanks, Jeri. I'll have to find a local farmer and see if I can get the manure and give everybody a treatment. I've also heard that a heat-treat of cuttings can kill the fungus. I'm thinking about taking some cuttings, putting them in the 100-degree bread proofing oven for 24 hours (wrapped in damp paper towels and stuck in a ziploc), and then trying to root them. Since I was thinking about moving the plant anyway, if I can get a clean plant started, I might be able to get the diseased mother out of the yard. It's the only rose showing any symptoms, and looking at photos from when it was a band, I think it might have been diseased coming from the vendor (the cane had a LOT of lesions on it.) So far it hasn't spread to anyone else, and I want to keep it that way.

@ clean_and_bright.....Can you believe P&G? I was "happyish" with non-concentrated Downy and could even get by using reg. Downy Ultra April Fresh mixed with Downy unscented. NOW, they have tweaked the "April Fresh" scent, so that there is almost no underlying April Fresh scent left. After drying it really just smells like old lady musty perfume that was somewhat washed off, but not really! MAD!! The Sun Blossom smells pretty good, diluted with unscented Downy. I am surprised...I actually prefer the Mrs.Meyer's Lemon Verbena!! Laundry is softer, smoother and the scent is lighter and fresher!!