I am shocked, Katya. DE is a set it and forget it rock solid wonder here. You say you water the DEs differently than those in back. What is the difference?

I thought the same. Set it and forget it. Its not on the same soaker hose net work as the other roses.. They are planted on a strip of land below and in front of a retaining wall in our front area. One has to water it manually by going out there. Mind you these Darlows have lived through the years without any care. Not thrived but hanging in there. I dont know what diseases it had in those years.

I am pretty certain they were not suffering from lack of water.

Out here, drip irrigation (more like soaker) is better than hand watering. For DEs, I don't think they want pampering or pruning. I would stop any of that. I doubt other roses would be happy there either if this is the way the DEs are doing. I'm puzzled.

I have been staring at the bed of DE from time to time all today. It does not morning sun but gets good hot sun from midday on. One end gets more sun than the other. There is plenty of sun so I dont understand the mildew. The only thing I can think of is that it dos not get morning sun so humidity from the night and morning dew does not dry up quickly and so the problems. But that is true for most beds areas that get only afternoon sun.

No, its nothing obvious.

Dingo, I dont think its something from the city....but I dont know.

Powdery mildew results from dryness as odd as that may seem. Try more water or spraying the leaves with water. I had a couple with this issue and diluted skim milk sprayed helped a lot. A very hot water spray has been tested and found to work also. I have dunked small roses in very hot water and it resolved the issue. Some roses are more prone, but I didn't think DE was one of them. Don't know what to say about the aphids. I had that two years ago and then they seemed to have reduced in number, but I can't recall if I hit them with a tobacco tea or not.

water Rx for aphids and PM

Like you say Vap, I am inclined to think it must be dryness rather than dampness. Let me see how I can address this.

Thanks!

Rifis: You mean water the soil and the leaves both right?

And mealy bugs!

rifis: water it is. I think water will help a lot.

Katyajini so sorry to see your Darlow’s. I am also extremely surprised because it really is the toughest rose here also. I had a terrible amount of aphids early spring that looked just like that in many of my roses and the did not bother Darlow’s enigma. I also did what rifis just recommended, a good strong wash several days in a row. I then saw lady bug larvae (they look like little black and orange monsters) in the area and backed off from spraying (a week later they were all gone). So check for lady bugs and their larvae, if they are around it will get better soon. I also have tried the diluted milk Vapor suggested and it has worked great for mildew. Soapy water also helps, but be careful of the temps.

Katy,

You could try digging down a spade's depth to see if the soil is dry ( or wet for that matter). That information will help you to know what to do.

Cath

Are they right on the street? Do they salt the roads in the winter - not sure where you are - but that can be an issue here.