M. Gonzales rose leaf curl and drop - Ask Extension
This happened to 5 Martha Gonzales roses in the same bed in front of my house. Right after the May monsoon of rains here in Denton County Texas, all...
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M. Gonzales rose leaf curl and drop #256704
Asked June 24, 2015, 11:39 AM EDT
This happened to 5 Martha Gonzales roses in the same bed in front of my house. Right after the May monsoon of rains here in Denton County Texas, all the leaves dropped and curled as in this photo. The bed is well drained, in part sun, and has plenty of air circulation. There are no signs of powdery mildew, black spot or aphids. There are some really tiny spider webs present on all of them, but I have yet to see any visible pests. Can anyone identify the problem? They are fertilized regularly. This is obviously not the dreaded rosette disease either.
The ground was also sprouting some smallish yellow mushrooms.
The ground was also sprouting some smallish yellow mushrooms.
Denton County Texas
Expert Response
The mushrooms are helping to break down your mulch and with all this moisture, we expect to see a few more mushrooms than usual. They are a good indication of organic material in your soil.
On your roses from the photo, I can't really tell much. But, we have seen a lot of plants that have been impacted from the amount of rain we received. Leaves curling up and dropping off. This is mainly due to the ground being saturated with water and the plant roots need air to survive, so they in essence, suffocate. The symptoms of too much water often look very similar to not enough water. Maybe this wasn't the case in your garden since you say that is well-drained. However, much of our soils are clay and they really got saturated this year.
The small spiderwebs makes me think you possibly have spider mites. They are a common pest of roses. One of the least toxic ways you can try to limit spider mites is to blast them with water, especially the underside of the leaf. Here is a publication with more information and insecticide recommendations. http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/organic/files/2011/03/spider_mites.pdf
Let me know if you need more assistance, or if this does not seem to be the culprit.
On your roses from the photo, I can't really tell much. But, we have seen a lot of plants that have been impacted from the amount of rain we received. Leaves curling up and dropping off. This is mainly due to the ground being saturated with water and the plant roots need air to survive, so they in essence, suffocate. The symptoms of too much water often look very similar to not enough water. Maybe this wasn't the case in your garden since you say that is well-drained. However, much of our soils are clay and they really got saturated this year.
The small spiderwebs makes me think you possibly have spider mites. They are a common pest of roses. One of the least toxic ways you can try to limit spider mites is to blast them with water, especially the underside of the leaf. Here is a publication with more information and insecticide recommendations. http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/organic/files/2011/03/spider_mites.pdf
Let me know if you need more assistance, or if this does not seem to be the culprit.
