Hi dmoore here is an article from the University of California that has some good up to date information. Hope it helps. Thrips Management Guidelines--UC IPM

Are you sure you had thrips not midge? :-) I have heard midge problems in NJ......

Now I'll have to investigate what midge are , something is already afoot on the Autumn Damask new growth. In the above article it states a reflective or light colored material can disorient thrips- i think laying down foil would disorient me more than them. i did put some mica rocks at the base of a few roses. i wonder if white landscape rock or pebbles would be of some effect without causing more problems.

Mudpie, try to take pictures and...

When you say Thrips, did you mean regular Thrips or Chili Thrips?

Kublakan, i was bug researching;

an adult chili thrip was positively identified last summer ( they are hideous looking )This year the black dots on Autumn Damsk's new growth are tiny, too small to photograph. I didn't want to destroy any nice bugs until I can figure out friend or foe, but the likelihood of it being baby ladybugs is optimistic.

The word among rose exhibitors is to use blue cups covered with spray cooking oil.

Midge is definitely different from thrips, and we have both in NJ. Midge destroys new buds, making the ends look like burned matchsticks before the rose gets to bloom. Thrips damage the blooms. No chilli thrips here that I know of.

Dmoore66,

You are right to act now. I tried to investigate possible treatments, most were chemical. Maybe someone in your area knows what works best and if dormant oil is ok to use.Some suggest to scrape and throw away the top layer of dirt, or treat with pesticides. Cutting off and disposing of all affected plant growth would be my whole rose, not practical advice for me.One nursery thought adding live Nematodes might help, also using Diatomacious Earth. I am going to check into buying a Bug swat team, specifically lacewings and ladybugs. They are expensive to buy and watch fly away, so I'll have to find out how to encourage them to stay, besides offering a feast of thrips and midge.

Study of thrip traps using blue and yellow cups.
http://scialert.net/fulltext/?doi=je.2007.263.266&org=10

mudpie7

Years ago I read something about how to keep ladybugs from flying away as soon as they were released. No, I cannot remember where I read it, but you might want to do some research along these lines.

The article recommended putting the ladybugs in the refrigerator for a couple of hours and then releasing them in the evening. They were more likely to stay on the plant(s) where they were released.

No, I haven't tried it. Just my trivial memory at work ... lol. Sometimes, I think my brains saves tidbits of info "just in case."

How did I miss the Blue Cups post ? That sounds like a good experiment to try .Blue is my favorite color too, hope that's where the similarity stops.I forgot what plant Ladybugs like to nest in for egg laying and now cannot find any info.

Just to add to midge damage. If no new forming buds are available they will also attack new forming laterals. Turning the newly forming leaf bud brown and killing it.

I can't imagine thrips preferring mustard oil to roses, but I guess I'll ( they will ) try it. Midge were the worst of the two , this year I'll cook up something for everybody.

Marci Martin says she got rid of the midge in her yard by spraying the white insides of the cup as well, but I haven't found any studies on that.