Is this my RRV sign?

last month

These pics are from my Peach Drifts. New leaves are starting to pop out but its too early to see the witches broom. Thoughts?

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fig_insanity Z7b E TN

last month

last modified: last month

@Sunny Mississippi. If you're not familiar with all the symptoms of RRD, you should familiarize yourself with ALL of them, then go by this rule of thumb: if the rose presents ONE symptom (usually excess thorniness OR red leaves), it's nothing to be worried about. It's the nature/genetics of the rose. If the rose shows TWO symptoms, you watch it like a hawk. If it shows THREE symptoms, it's probably RRD.

Most common signs of RRD:

MISSHAPEN red leaves that DO NOT TURN GREEN. They may have distorted edges, or be strap-like. If the leaves do not appear mal-formed, but are merely red, that is NOT a symptom. Imagine your leaves in black and white, without the red color, that will help.
Excessive thorns ON NEW GROWTH (we're talking weird, compacted, thorns-against-thorns) that may not harden and remain rubbery
The classic witches' broom growth, which is congested growth caused by all of the latent growth buds attempting to grow at once (normally, only the primary/dominant bud will sprout, unless it is damaged). It will also present symptom number one. The only other thing that resembles this is Round-Up herbicide damage. Once you've seen both, you can tell the difference.
New growth from older canes which is larger in diameter than the older growth it springs from. This doesn't happen in all cases, but if it appears, it's nearly 100% sure it's RRD IF there is at least one other symptom.
Flowers/buds with distorted sepals, petals, and sexual parts.

Some things to watch out for in addition to this list, are reduced hardiness, sudden dieback, and increased susceptibility to other diseases.

I recommend you Google "Rose Rosette Symptoms" and choose the "images" tab. It will gross you out, but will help you ID the real thing.

I grow almost 250 different roses, and I've lost count of how many actual plants that entails, since I have duplicates. Unfortunately, I also can't count how many of them I've lost over the years to RRD. The list of symptoms and what to watch for is what I've learned from experience, and from Ann @stillanntn6b, who is our very own RRD authority. If you're ever in doubt, reach out to her. She knows her stuff.

Hope this helps.

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Comments (7)

PDXRobertZ8
last month
Absolutely NO RRD. Normal growth.
Moses, Pittsburgh, W. PA., zone 5/6, USA
last month
last modified: last month
I concur with Robert. Normal growth.

Moses
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In the spring, I often get super-healthy looking new canes and shoots growing off the rose bushes--sometimes off a cane, sometimes as a new cane coming out of the soil (I bury by grafts.) This is such a common spring occurrence that I do not get up-tight or nervous about it. Since this super-growth is prominent, I keep a general eye on it--but so far all the super-growth has merely "hardened off" or matured into a big strong cane with more vigor than the earlier canes but the blooms look about the same. In other words, nothing weird has ever developed from the super-canes. Kate
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Not by me, Henry. I don't use herbicides (though I'm sorely tempted to!), and my nearest "neighbor" is half a mile away; I live in the middle of 112 acres. But I AM surrounded on every side by thousands of multiflora roses, with every third one infected by RRV. Trust me, I've seen hundreds of cases of RRV. Plus, my CdR isn't near the edge of the property, but smack in the middle of a bed at the bottom of my yard, surrounded by other plants, including many roses; just the right place for wind speed to fall and drop mites. And also, the CdR has put out new growth all over, and if it were herbicide damage, some of the other growth would be affected, but it's ONLY the one new basal that is deformed, and no symptoms on the roses to either side. But thanks for asking. Some of the new members here might not know to check for herbicide usage.
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It's a learning experience for you. I think everyone is a little bit hyper about RRV and maybe we all need to calm down a bit. Roses do have odd growth sometimes. All plants do if you think about it. They're called mutations and happen more frequently than you realize. If they're advantageous plants keep them otherwise they may happen once never to be seen again. And SOOOOO many things can cause a change in growth habit to a plant. Weather, soil, nutrients, applications, etc., etc., etc. can be the cause of a change in the growth. A watchful eye and caution are good things as long as they don't lead to panic.
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Thanks you guys! It's going to be great to have all of the rootstock I need to try this budding chipping exercise. I guess I'll start a post on that in the propagation and start researching things. I think there are a lot of great tutorials over there that I've read in the past. I also have some good books that outline it in detail. Countess DLC, it does have extremely fringed stipules. I thought I had better pictures of it but apparently not. However there still exists the possibility that it could be some sort of multiflora hybrid as my property had quite a few old roses originally that I still grow. It's just strange that I have two of these plants in strategic places. I cleared out one area and got some very unusual tulips growing there that I haven't seen the entire time I've lived here which is a long time. So I'm just going to leave them for the time being for cuttings and move them in the future when it's more convenient. They did already flower. You can see the tiny hips in the last picture. They were very few as it was covered by invasive Bush Honeysuckle and other assorted things.
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Sunny Mississippi 8a
Original Author
last month
Thank you Robert and Moses. I was concerned about all the thorns here, then almost no thorns there. All the new growth so far is bright green. Thanks again!
PDXRobertZ8
last month
Some roses don’t develop their thorns until they mature. But it’s definity healthy!
Sunny Mississippi 8a
Original Author
last month
Thank you fig! That was immensely helpful. I will watch these like a hawk. There was a tiny bit of weird growth last year that I cut out. I wasn't sure if it was the intense drough or the extreme, sustained heat, or RRD. My mom had RRD on her Sweet Drifts maybe last year and it was very obvious. I dug those out and bagged them. I used her tools, not mine. But I wonder if the mite can travel on clothes? We live maybe ten miles from each other so of course the wind could carry them too. I'm not trying to jinx myself, but I do feel it's only a matter of when. So far only the drifts have shown me anything suspicious at all.
nippstress - zone 5 Nebraska
last month
FWIW on another thread where Ann gave tremendously helpful information and support for RRD in my yard, she cited literature that RRD travels primarily by the wind and "drop patterns" of high growing plants/trees that then drop the mites to the roses. Apparently there was research where they deliberately tried to spread RRD from one rose to another using pruners and they couldn't do it. Not that I recommend trying that experiment in your own yard, and I sanitize my pruners for minimizing other things like Downy mildew transfer. We still don't know enough about RRD transmission but I let go of some of the immediate guilt of my transferring it between roses with pruners (or clothes). The source of my infection turned out to be a neighbor's yard that kept sending RRD mites my way.

I found it reassuring that it wasn't something I actively did that spread RRD, but there also aren't a lot of techniques for avoiding it beyond identifying (correctly) infected roses and disposing of them as you did at your mom's. Asking here for feedback about photos helps you not jump the gun too fast and see RRD where it isn't actually present.

Fig - wonderful summary of information and I've saved it as a great reminder of the bottom line parameters I'm looking for in the future. None of us can say we're done with RRD, but it shouldn't stop us from growing roses (at least it hasn't stopped me!)

Cynthia

Is this my RRV sign?

fig_insanity Z7b E TN

Comments (7)

PDXRobertZ8

Moses, Pittsburgh, W. PA., zone 5/6, USA

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Is this my RRV sign?

fig_insanity Z7b E TN

Comments (7)

PDXRobertZ8

Moses, Pittsburgh, W. PA., zone 5/6, USA

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