ROSES

Time to start thinking about fall rose care! Stop deadheading; allowing hips to form will naturally tell your plants it’s time to start preparing for winter (and give birds a treat, too!). Stop fertilizing, but keep watering if we have dry spells. When the weather settles in to chilly (probably November), give your roses a light pruning, strip any foliage that shows signs of disease or insect damage, and give your rose bed a nice cover of compost for the winter. If you had troublesome disease or insect problems, winter is the time to attack them - apply dormant spray in January to reduce next year’s pests.

Black spot on roses

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Roses

Organic Gardening

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