How do I produce perfect roses without it becoming a pain?

I have been a keen rose grower for several years, but recently after aquiring an allotment, I have been having problems with them the likes of which i've never experienced before. Mildew, aphids, mould, but most concerning of all, every time I bend over to pull the many weeds that are sprouting from the roots, someone comes up behind me and sticks a hoe up my backside. I wouldn't mind normally, but these days my piles wont allow it. Any suggestions?

How do I produce perfect roses without it becoming a pain?
Bad language for the person with a hoe, to begin with.





You're probably downwind of all sorts of nasties from the other allotments. Plus, unfortunately, mildew and black spot occur most frequently in *clean* air, darn it. Also, are neighbours' plants preventing yours from getting the sun they need?





If you're an established rose grower you should already know the importance of good soil preparation, choice of variety, when and when not to feed. The best bit of good news is that you can still get Armatillox, as I discovered only recently. This is the chemical that used to be used whenever one wanted to prevent rose sickness - e.g. planting a new rose where an old one lived - and dreaded lurgis like honey fungus. It will sterilise the soil and so stop the spores from many nasties from over-wintering and reinfecting your plants in Spring. In common with many people, I thought that it had been taken completely off the market because of some European Union directive. It hasn't. You can get it in garden centres - they are just not allowed to talk with you about its previous uses, although the formula is exactly the same as before; so now it is labelled as a path cleaner. So this autumn I've been busy sterilising the soil underneath my poor sick roses and covering them with mulch, as well as using it in milder concentration as a wash.





That won't solve everything, but its absence left a great gap in the gardener's toolkit and I was to pleased to find that it's still around. Just don't mention The War (against mildew, black spot, etc.) 'cos the garden centre folk will clam up and not talk about it.





Hope that helps a bit.
Reply:1. don't bend over. stoop or kneel to reach the weeds.


2. smack "someone" up the side of the head with that hoe.


3. make up better stories.
Reply:Keep the fertilizer up to them.- as they are hungry feeders





Add extra potassium - to make leaf cell walls stronger and stop fungi penetrating





Spray for fungi (black spot) every 2 weeks





Use systemic pesticides for insects(will last longer in the plant)





Prune regularly