SPOTTED DICK (NASTY BITS ON YOUR ROSES)

Words by Jessica Peace

BLACK SPOT

This is a bit more than a polka dot, not only will your rose drop it’s leafy kit, it will become weak and unable to give you much. The best solution is to put your specs on and get out your secs. Snip off your dotty leaves early on, if you’ve turned up a bit late then get yourself an organic fungicide and get spraying.

ROSE APHIDS

If you’re bush is drooping a bit (we’ve all been there) you might have a bunch of little green monsters hanging out on your buds, literally sucking the sap out of roses. It’s tricky when you’re protecting a living thing from another living thing, if you can get your hose going at the right force and angle (!) you can blast them off.

ROSE RUST

Hard on the eyes as it may be, this fungal infection won’t bring your bush to much harm. If you’ve got it, snip it and spray it like your black spot with an organic fungicide - ALWAYS get rid of diseased foliage. If you’re buying new roses you can ask for ‘rust resistant’ varieties.