Look at the spray programs on rosemania. They are comprehensive and informative. rosemania downloads

Disclaimer: I have no relationship to rosemania other than having been a very occasional customer in the past.

Thanks hoovb ,I will do that .

Being that you are in central Florida, you might just consider looking away from your roses in late June, July, August and early September. It is a BIG job to keep them looking good those times. All mine (mostly antiques) are in recovery now and I expect I shall be looking again at them soon.

Veronica in Thonotosassa

Veronica ,I am a first year rose gardener so I am still learning ! I guess next summer I will leave the leaves alone .

SoFl ,Thanks .l will look into the roses you recommended. Do you prune again in spring.?

No, I usually don't in the winter. I do my major pruning in the fall once the wet season ends. My roses are almost always at their most beautiful in the winter here so I rarely prune them. I also give them a light pruning anytime they start to look overly leggy throughout the year, but my major pruning is in the fall after the rainy season when they tend to look very leggy. (I don't prune any that look good, only the ones that need it).

soFLrose ,

can you smell your roses during summer ? sadly for me I could not detect any smell all summer long from my fragrant roses like Mr.lincon, Double Delight , Fragrant cloud, Memorial day ,Granada ,perfume Delight . Although I did in the spring .

Thanks about the pruning tip . I was not sure when to prune . I thought I would let them grow for a year before doing so ,but I deadhead a lot . we do have a couple of frost nights in Jan/Feb . Do you think I should prune after that ?

I grew roses in Central FL. (Winter Haven) for over 20 years. Another 10 yrs in Port St. Lucie before moving to N.E.GA in 08. When I lived in Fl. we didn't have but one choice in fungicides and it had to be sprayed every week. Then other fungicides came along where you only had to spray every two (2) weeks to keep everything clean. If you don't mind spraying every two weeks, this is the schedule I would do. Bayer Disease Control every two weeks for for three times. On your spray #4, use a combination of Honor Guard AND Mancozeb for one spraying. Then the next spray, go back to Bayers Disease Control for 3 times and back to Honor Guard and Mancozeb for the 4th spraying, using this rotation should keep your bush's clean ALL year long. As time goes on, you'll get to know how each bush grows and then you can adjust your pruning according to each bush. I wouldn't worry too much about any frost during the "winter". Your roses will be fine. If your bush's start to get long and leggy any time of year, pull them back to where you want them. The biggest thing is to "stop and smell the roses and enjoy them". When everything is said and done, that's what it's all about. Making YOU happy.

Ken ,

I was waiting for your input since I knew you had long experience growing roses in FL . Thanks . Did you prune them lightly all year round or hard pruned once in Fall/Spring ?

My pruning depended on the winters. If we had a couple of solid freeze's, come middle to late February I would cut my bush's down to about mid gut high (I'm 5'8") and strip all the foliage. If the winter's were mild, I'd just keep the bush's shaped all year long. Taking the twiggy growth out in September and March.

I agree with Ken that enjoying your roses should be the reason to grow roses. If they become more work than pleasure, then people move on to other pursuits. I am in the "no spray and don't look too closely camp". I only want roses in my garden that don't need a spray program to look good most of the year. I you ever want to experiment with an almost bullet proof rose, you might want to give Mrs. B.R. Cant try, if you don't already grow her.

Valrose

Thanks ! Can you please recommend a HT or floribunda for a spot that faces west and is in full day sun .l want a rounded bush like double delight or fragrant cloud ,both are there .don't want any tall bushes .prefer black spot resistance. I am thinking of Dick Clark but l am afraid it would get too tall on Fortuniana.

Just checked Mrs.br cant .looks huge ! I want a smaller rose plus l prefer the modern rose form .

My roses are almost only own roots. You're right about Mrs BR Cant being huge. How about Belindas Dream? It can get big too but can be kept to a manageable size. Dame de Coeur is an older hybrid tea that I have good luck with, black/red blooms and a nice bush shape. I also have Elina, a very clean rose and another rose that isn't too hard to keep to a manageable size.

Go with Elina. It's a great rose.

Valrose ,

Elina looks beautiful but I have mostly reds & pinks in this bed . Belinda's dream is too much the same color of Memorial Day which is in the same bed . plus MD is a thrip magnet so I would assume is BD is too .Dame de coer looks promising ,I will check it out .I grew Dr Huey roses in my soil for a couple of years but they did not thrive ,rarely blooming .own root I have only one which I will s/p in the next month :Kordes Dark Desire .it did not bloom all summer and when it did the bloom last spring they were small and unimpressive. Do you have experience with Weeks Easy to love rose series ?

ken ,

can you please recommend a round bushy healthy rose ? red/pink or blend .

in the same bed I have :perfume delight,Granada ,Double delight ,perfect moment,Mr.Lincon ,Memorial Day ,Fragrant cloud. three roses grow tall which I dont like :Mr lincon, perfume delight and Memorial Day.

You might want to take a look at Crimson Bouquet. Another red that I think is the best red to grow in FL. is Kentucky Derby. Also take a look at Brigadoon.

Thanks ! I will check these .

When we get into the 90's, I give my roses a cold water spray. Seems to take care of little chewing bugs, spider mites, and generally refreshes the plant. I pick off any black spotty leaves first.

i have a water wand with a brass nozzle, made by a member of the Louisville rose club years ago. It provides a really strong but fine spray to the undersides of the leaves.

These days the cold water spray is about all i use. Of course I did have to eliminate some roses which would not survive without chemicals (Memorial Day, Lavaglut, Playboy). I miss 'em!

Hi barbrag happy .

Thanks .I water the roses daily myself in 90s weather and spray them with the hose .what disease resistence verieties do you grow ?

soFL

Thanks a lot ! I will looking into those roses in HMF . I am leaning towards Easy does it since its supposed to be disease free .

Pink Rose, some of the best disease resistant roses here are: Peach and Sweet Drift, Lavender Meidiland, Belinda's Dream, Quietness, Cubana, Grande Dame, Easter Basket, Take It Easy, Orchid Romance, and Sunny KnockOut. Sunshine Daydream gets 10-20% blackspot, not bad for a yellow. Night Owl loses up to 30% of its leaves, not bad for a "purple".

Only about a third of my roses are modern varieties. Outstandingly healthy older varieties include Mrs. BR Cant, Mrs. Dudley Cross, Monsieur Tillier, Mme. Antoine Mari, Ducher and Le Vesuve. Those are all teas and also good cut. I love noisettes; Blush Noisette, Reve d'Or and Alister Stella Gray.

We're both hot and humid right thru July and August, temps in the 80-90's and humidity in the 60's and above.

I have also grown roses in north Texas and found it easier than here, due to the lower humidity. That's despite north Texas heat with temps over 100 for weeks on end...

Oh! Pink Rose for me, Belinda's Dream has perfect blooms. I used it as a replacement for Memorial Day which I finally gave up on! Thripsssss yuck

Why MD is plagued with thrips and Belinda's Dream is not, I just do not know.

Barbrag happy

wow Great tip about BD and I thought all light colored roses are thrip magnets . My MD is always damaged in spite of my spraying , but the bush is vigorous and disease resistant . I will check the roses you mentioned . our humdity is %95 daily in summer .