Can I save roses with stunted leaf growth? - Ask Extension
I moved here last year. Last fall, my roses were overgrown and cut back. This spring a few of my rose bushes only have stunted leaf growth. Others ...
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Can I save roses with stunted leaf growth? #872737
Asked June 12, 2024, 7:20 AM EDT
I moved here last year. Last fall, my roses were overgrown and cut back. This spring a few of my rose bushes only have stunted leaf growth. Others look great but have a few branches of stunted leaf and flower growth. Local garden center thinks it’s witches broom caused by a mite. All leaves are green and I don’t see excessive thorn growth. Can these roses be saved or do I need to dig them out to save the other roses (some roses in garden bed seem 100% healthy)?
Anne Arundel County Maryland
Expert Response
The symptoms pictured could be due to a viral infection (which some mites can transmit, though not exclusively) or herbicide damage. We suspect the latter based on the drastic nature of the leaf distortion and the extent of the damage. Neither condition is treatable or curable, unfortunately, and any symptomatic plant would need to be replaced. (A shrub with very minimal damage that you think could be from herbicide can be kept and monitored, and if new growth eventually looks normal, you can assume it may recover on its own.) If you didn't happen to use any type of weed killer nearby, then perhaps airborne chemical drifted into that part of the yard from a neighboring property or nearby farm; some plants are more highly sensitive to certain herbicide ingredients than others.
Miri
Miri