MEET LITTLE LUCY!

We are very proud and delighted to introduce to you a new member of our Wairere Family. Meet LUCY! Lloyd's baby Scotty Dog. Lloyd was presented with the baby on his birthday (by Harry) and they bonded within seconds and are now inseparable. We have a ‘puppy play-pen' in our office and we have all fallen for little Lucy. She is showing typical Scotty-dog signs of stubbornness already, and is not shy about giving the other dogs a telling off, but she is as cute as a button.

Summer Rose Care

We all love roses. Unfortunately, we humans are not the only ones who love roses - diseases and pests do too.  Frequent rainfall and high humidity encourage several leaf diseases and fresh new growth encourages aphids. Warm summers give them the chance to build up their populations to survive yet another winter.

Because of their disease and insect problems, you may perceive growing roses a bother, but, let's face it, they are certainly worth the effort. The rose is one of the few plants that bloom repeatedly throughout the summer. Simple methods in tending roses can dramatically improve results.

We would all agree that prevention is better than cure, so by practicing some basic good cultural habits, we can go a long way to creating the ideal growing conditions which will minimise the need for spraying.

Air Circulation and Sunlight

When you plant new roses, take care to plant the bushes far enough from each other, from other plantings, and from fences and walls to allow adequate air circulation. Remember, plants that don't dry quickly enough are more susceptible to black spot infections; poor air circulation also means higher humidity, which is conducive to both rust and powdery mildew attack. Roses like lots of sunshine, but their diseases don't.

Be vigilant about hygiene!

Always remove and destroy any infected or infested plant parts that you cut off. Destroy diseased material rather than composting it as compost can reintroduce diseases to the soil if high temperatures have not been reached. Destroy debris by burning or burying. Also deadhead spent blooms to remove aphid colonies and the beginning of powdery mildew infestations.

Disease-resistant Plants

Before you plant, consider buying disease-resistant rose cultivars. Cultivars with good resistance to major diseases are available. It might be hard to find a cultivar the colour and fragrance you are looking for that is disease resistant. However, se1ecting plants that have even moderate resistance can reduce the care required.

Watch how you Water

Avoid overhead watering, especially during black spot season, to keep from splashing the spores and wetting the leaves. To keep night-time humidity at a minimum and reduce powdery mildew, water in the early part of the day.

Sprays

The ideal spraying programme to keep roses healthy and flourishing is one that is preventative. By rotating the use of Copper oxychloride, Shield, Super Shield and Greengaurd, you cover the bases and avoid the development of diseases. The most important aspect in terms of timing is that you get that spraying done before the rain comes. Attention to proper use and timing guidelines usually makes spraying more effective and can reduce the need to spray frequently. For more information on spraying times and specific sprays, click here.

The major disease we need to deal with in summer is Black Spot

If you have grown roses, then you know what these ugly spots look like. They are characterized by dark spots with irregular edges on leaves. Infections are caused by a fungus, and are visible first as small black flecks on the top of the leaves.

Rose plants infected with black spot lose their leaves early and look bare. The leaves that fall can re-infect the plant when it rains again. Spores produced on old plant material are splashed onto young leaves by rains or by summer watering. If a leaf surface stays wet for 24 hours or longer,  the spores can grow again.

Conditions that black spot thrives on:

• Presence of infected plant material
• Splashing by rain or watering
• Leaves stay wet for 24 hours or longer

The major pest we need to deal with in summer is Aphids

Some facts about Aphids

• They are able to survive the winter on the plant
• They have a vigorous reproductive rate and, unlike us humans and other creatures, they don't need a man to reproduce!
• Populations increase vastly in summer

The physical impact of most aphids is minimal but we don't like them because we don't like seeing them clustering around the tender new growth of our roses. Larger colonies of feeding aphids can weaken flower bud necks and distort leaf growth. They do not spread any rose diseases.

Aphid eggs live through the winter in protected nooks and crannies on the plant. In the spring, eggs hatch into females that are capable of reproducing without mating - interesting! They give birth to live female aphid young that have the same capability which means that they have a fast and efficient way to colonize a plant.

Aphids can be removed by any force - either with a flick or by hosing them with a strong jet of water - and often it's sufficient simply to knock them to the ground. They are poor climbers and probably will not bother, and they run a high risk of getting eaten by other insect predators on the ground. If you are not squeamish, simply pick them off the buds and stems and squash them!

In winter when the plants are dormant, spray with horticulture oil as this suffocates lingering aphid eggs. Good spray coverage is important.

An excellent method of biological control is to grow Phacelias in the vicinity of the roses as they are highly attractive to the hoverfly which is a major predator of the aphid. Other eco-friendly methods of rose care are described here.

Closely observe your roses to learn their specific needs; this will save time and frustration in the long run.

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