If you are interested and willing to search (Google or Bing), check out some of the articles on AGDIA, which is a company that makes tests for viruses and other diseases of plants. You can see the PCR and ELISA tests that are available for roses (and for many other plants.) Do you know the word "Synergy"? Not the new age version, but the science based synergy- there are some interesting plant pathology sites out there as well. Briefly, Synergy means that diseaseA has X symptoms and disease B has Y symptoms, but when a plant has diseases A&B, the plant will not have a simple mix of X and Y symptoms, but often will also have new (call them Z) symptoms that may be worse that the sum of X and Y. Where does that leave rose growers? It leaves rose growers wanting to keep their plants as healthy as possible so that no even more damaging symptoms appear. Years ago a simple study was done in California roses. Under optimum conditions, roses with a single virus (as tested for back then) produced ten to fifteen per cent fewer blooms. That, economically, was reason to keep the plants as clean as possible. And to the root to root transmission: Google Scholar papers by Giolino (author), roses, and the time period last ten years.

Carolyn and all, thank you. I've been reading about CMV and so I've got some hard questions and decisions this season. So I broke down and used some Ortho garden pesticide a few days ago to rid the plants of the aphids, but I guess my questions are - am I done with tomatoes in this garden for the season? for several? The garden is well mulched and mostly weed free, and my location with the azeala bushes and hydrangea within 2ft isn't going to be able to change so I just don't see the garden being bug free. Last, I am pretty sure the disease had to come from last years Cucumbers, it easily could have been transmitted by trowel, cages, or pruners - so will a dormant season in the garden help innoculate the bed/garden area or is it simply bugs in the surronding landscape will overwinter and return to infect season after season? (I will disinfect the tools and cages) Thanks again.

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.

"Really it was very productive last year." The more cuts, the longer it will take to get back to the same production. Decide what your end goal is now. Max figs? Just cutting bad sections out? Opening it up more and making it easier to reach? I think I see tiny holes so it may be something boring into the trunk + maybe frost damage: http://www.caes.uga.edu/newswire/story.html?storyid=5161 Hard pruning (section 8): http://figs4fun.com/basics.html You should be have no worries about chain sawing away any of the branches. If you really want harder pruning, that main trunk's diameter looks very large. I've never seen anyone prune that hard i.e. mature fig tree -> open vase. Your zone may prohibit that; also the other cuts above may require some frost protection for a few years.