[Happieburdie]

Hi all,

I have 2 rose bushes that usually have a beautiful yellow flower...However, during the week I noticed that the buds that should have bloomed, have died. There does'nt seem to be any sign of greenfly, and other that I have'nt pruned them in a year, Im at a total loss....

What d'ya think the problem is, and how do I fix it??? Thanks so much

[walltoall]

On the basis that the roses are well established (been there some years) and the buds came out and THEN died the most likely cause should be frost. Cut off every single dead bud halfway along its stem and hope for a new flush. This has been a very cold spring and the wee north got the brunt of a lot of cold. Wait for other opinions though as there are are quite a few rose experts (not me! lol) on Irish Gardeners. Oh! and don't be afraid to use the search box above

[Happieburdie]

Thank you walltoall for the reply....
Yeah, the buds came out, expected to see a few yellow blooms within a day or two, and sure they've died, almost rotted on the stem, but the rest of the rose bush is flying.
Only planted maybe 3years at most, but growing so fast...

Anyway, I'll wait and see, but I'll bear your advise in mind. Thanks so much

[walltoall]

Cut off every single dead bud halfway along its stem and expect a new flush. Most yellow roses flower repeatedly. Is it a climber a rambler or a bush?

[Happieburdie]

It says its a "ground cover rose", and I thought that meant literally ....Right now, it looks like most common rose bushes...But I will take your advise and cut the dead buds off.....When they were budding before they died, they were healthy buds...What could I do to prevent this happening again?

Thanks again

[walltoall]

Difficult to give hard and fast advice at this distance (Essex!) but it's unlikely you are doing anything silly. "Ground cover" means it should have a bush form but not grow very high. One thing about roses I've found they rarely do what it says on the tin.

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/roses/msg0515234414523.html

It's impossible to prevent nature taking its own course. Roses are pretty bullet proof, generally. My 26 all survived one of the coldest winters in half a century, but were not subjected to below zero temperatures since -2 on 10th march long before they had started new growth. I've never actually SEEN rose buds killed by frost but I've HEARD of it. The reason for cutting off all existing buds in your case is to concentrate the forming of new buds.

It's like when roses have bloomed and are starting to fall apart you should remove the old bloom and its stalk to prevent the shrub trying to form a hip where the rose had been. Thus all the energy of the plant goes into producing new blooms instead of producing useless and sterile 'hips'. I've seen some rare crops of these hips some as big as plums over the years and the owners wonder why they don't get loads of roses like I do.

By the way a little known tid-bit. Never attempt to plant a new rose in a place where an old one died or was dug out. Roses leave some kind of 'poison' in the ground for years after removal. I don't know how it works, but this might save you bother in years to come?

[Happieburdie]

Thanks Walltoall, thats a big help...

Feeling a lot more positive now....