Sorry to hear that... Maybe it takes longer?
You would think without host plants they would move on or die...

I learned that I had a pretty severe rose midge problem several months ago. I have mostly hybrid teas in my garden and I couldn't understand why they were hardly putting out new growth or flowers and why all the rose buds were bent. Finally someone told me that I had rose midges, which I had never heard of. Removing all of my roses was never an option for me and even though I hated to do it, I gave in and used pesticides.

I was stunned because almost immediately, the roses all started putting out new shoots and perfect buds. So, for me it was a necessary evil.

The Bayer granules will be effective because it should interrupt the life cycle of the midge. Apparently, after they feed on the new growth, they drop their larve down into the dirt where they grow and then the cycle starts all over again.

I used this, in addition to Bayer complete (the kind that is diluted 1 tbsp to a gallon and the plant is watered with it). I also used the bayer complete that you attach to the end of the hose to spray the bushes as well as the ground.

I'm aware that so many people on this board are vehemently opposed to the use of any chemicals in their gardens, so no offense whatsoever intended. The fact remains, I put soooooo much time and energy into my roses and I was not willing to let them be decimated..

I don't know if more time would have made a difference. It's hard to imagine that they can survive in the same spot without feeding on roes for a year, but they sure did. I was very careful not to plant anything in the rose family in those spots so as to avoid giving them "interim" feeder plants.

Interestingly I planted a rose bush in a spot in the yard that's about 30ft away from other roses and where there have not been any roses before. So far it shows no sign of rose midge at all, it bloomed wonderfully all summer. That proves to me what I read online, that midge does not travel well on it's own over longer distances.

Moving forward my only option will be to try and kill them off first thing next spring. I too tried the liquid Bayer pesticide, the one that you need to mix with water, but I found it very ineffective. Maybe I got the dosage wrong, or maybe I didn't pour enough of the solution per plant, I don't know. In any case I will give the granules a try next March.

I read rose midge can travel 50ft-100ft...
Same article mentioned it took 2-3 years of no roses...

I wrote to our Ag office to see what is effective against Rose Midge no answer back yet...

This post was edited by jim1961 on Sat, Oct 25, 14 at 21:37

Here's how you can locate a Master Gardener in your area to ask about Rose Midge...

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"Good Afternoon! Bayer advised that Merit will not be effective and is not labeled for Rose Midges. Please contact your Master Gardener http://www.csrees.usda.gov/Extension/index.html for what systemic can safely and effectively be applied."

Here is a link that might be useful: Master Gardener

This post was edited by jim1961 on Sat, Oct 25, 14 at 21:36

Here's the info I just got back from a Master Gardener here in Pa on Rose Midge...
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This article written by Sandy Feather, the horticulture educator in Allegheny County addresses rose midge and its controls. She recommended a liquid application rather than a granular control.

Rose buds that turn brown and fail to produce flowers while the plant looks fine are classic symptoms of an insect called the rose midge (Dasineura rhodophaga). Rose midges can also damage vegetative buds and stems and cause deformed flowers that do not open properly. This pest overwinters as a pupa in a white silken cocoon in the soil under infested plants. Adults emerge in late spring as soil temperatures warm. You may get to enjoy the first crop of roses if soil temperatures remain cool early on, but once the adults emerge and begin laying eggs, you would be lucky to see even one normal flower. Many generations develop through the growing season.

Female adults lay their eggs in flowers, buds or expanding leaf buds, or even the tender tissue of elongating shoots. Those eggs hatch quickly, and the young larvae immediately begin to cut into tender buds and stem tissue to get to the sap that is their primary food source.

The injured tissue dies, turning brown at first, then black. It is common to find as many as 10-15 larvae on a single bud. They are very tiny -- less than 2 millimeters long -- so they often go unnoticed until you miss the flowers or notice dead buds. You can see the creamy white to pale red larvae on close inspection, but they are very small. They mature in about a week. Some drop to the ground to pupate, while others pupate in the injured buds or stem tissue. It takes only about two weeks for them to complete their entire life cycle during warm summer weather. Adults are small, inconspicuous reddish-brown flies. They do not feed at all and live only for a day or two.

Controls targeted at the first generation can drastically reduce or even eliminate the need for treatment later in the season. The only organic control that seems at all effective is to cover the soil under infested plants with plastic or layers of dampened newspaper. The idea is that adults have a difficult time getting out of the soil and die. It seems likely this approach would be more effective with plastic mulch that heats the soil enough to kill the pupal or adult stage of this pest.

Bayer Advanced Power Force Multi-Insect Killer (cyfluthrin), Bayer Advanced Garden Rose & Flower Insect Killer (cyfluthrin and imidacloprid), and pyrethrins and piperonyl butoxide are labeled to control rose midge in Pennsylvania. Start making applications as roses begin to leaf out in the spring. Make two more applications at 10-day intervals to ensure good control. Although many organic gardeners prefer to use pyrethrins without piperonyl butoxide, pyrethrins alone may not provide significant control of rose midges.

This post was edited by jim1961 on Sun, Oct 26, 14 at 11:24

Thats an interesting article Jim and I think it might explain what happened with my roses. Every spring for the last 4 years, I have covered my rose beds with newspapers and thick layer of mulch. The spring, I was very busy and just didn't have the time to do it.

I'm now thinking that this allowed the midges to go out of control and take over.. Creepy......

I'm having this issue this year as well.

Regarding the organic methods of plastic or newspapers around the roses in spring, how big of an area would I need to cover? To the drip line? Or does wind possibly have them landing outside of that?

Last year I read about a blogger who attempted to deal with RM by removing the top couple inches of soil in the fall, but she reduced her blogging this year and only vaguely stated she still has some RM but continues to instagram fabulous rose pics. Based on the pics, I'm tempted to remove topsoil followed in spring with a newspaper barrier.

Thanks for these posts.

I'd go beyond the dripline as far as you can...
Maybe contact the blogger to see how she did it and how things worked out?

Removing soil?

Read this in a article:
There is some anecdotal reports that removal of any mulch and loose soil around the plants in late fall will remove the embedded larva which burrows about 1-2" below the surface. Again this material must be removed from the garden or anywhere within 150 feet to prevent return of the insect.

http://www.pghrosesociety.org/rosemidge.html