I've been dismayed to see that in the past 3 weeks my roses have all caught..something.. as they all showed the signs at the same time... I sprayed them but that has not helped...as you can see . .they are a real mess... they have been healthy in the past 2 years. My questions would be 1. what disease do they have 2. Would it be appropriate to cut them backTHAT much in the middle of summer... they are so diseased, I just know what else would work but to cut all of them back...?? Any help is appreciated.
roksee

You can try pruning them back, pot into fresh soil and water regularly.

I second BigBill's suggestion. If you feel strongly about growing the roses in containers, I would suggest root pruning when you change the container soil, or you could transplant it into a bigger pot without having to prune the roots. If container planting is optional, you could move the rose into the fertile ground with good drainage. I highly recommend that you check out the thread (The thread "Is my DA dying?" in Roses forum) where another rose grower is experiencing the same issue as you are. The thread is loaded with useful suggestions on how to salvage your deteriorating rose plants.

What has the weather been like for the past three weeks where you live? Have the temps suddenly risen? Do you have the roses in full sun? I know I have leaf burn on my roses but it is from the unrelenting heat over the past four weeks.

Also, the pots look a bit small for the roses, but it is hard to tell from your pictures. What did you spray them with? Have they been watered daily during this heat spell?

9a/10b. (17). zones
i live in northern ca. the weather has been very dry this year .
thank you all. No one has mentioned what they think the problem is in terms of disease... is it mildew? i really can't tell for sure. They certainly need to be repotted as they have been in the same soil for 3 years... it's just that this was a 'sudden' problem with all of them, so i know there is something else going on as well. i would always rather they be in the ground but can no longer dig holes that are appropriate. i have watered them correctly ( maybe too much at times, given they are in pots)

That's because most think it is not a disease. It is a watering/potting issue. Many times a secondary problem arises from the primary problem. Solve the primary issue and the other issue should dissipate.
Mildew generally comes from too much moisture.

Does the type of rose determine the pot size?
How often should they be refreshed/repotted?

If they were mine and let's just say that they are in a 10" pot, I would repot them yearly at the beginning of the growing season.
I would trim roots, inspect and remove dead twigs, replace with new potting soil and use the same size pot. A week or so after new soil I would add a little plant food and then once again in mid growing season.

hey everybody .. so much useful information... thank you...
most of the roses are in 20" pots... a few are in bigger pots.
Yes i feel ready to start the healing process!

One of the first lessons we learned (the hard way) was that any rose we acquired was going to need a pot about 3X the size we thought it would need.

I might also suggest that, given the temperatures we've seen all up and down California, your roses might be happier with some significant afternoon shade. They look cooked.

Yes.. I agree about the placement now that it has been so darn hot ! I often experience moving plants and being amazed at how they begin to flourish..seems...all of a sudden... then I remember, I like to be placed where I am happiest too.
Thanks for your input
roksee

The damage looks like spider mites to me. They thrive in hot, dry weather, and the damage can appear rather suddenly, because the population can explode rapidly. They damage leaves and young shoots by sucking the moisture out of them. Below are some images from the Web that show typical spider mite damage. If you want to confirm that it's spider mites, look at the undersides of the leaves with a magnifying glass to see if you can detect the little critters. You may also see minuscule webs across leaves.

If you confirm the presence of spider mites, the best treatment is not pruning, but plucking the affected leaves, and cleaning out the leaf litter that has fallen into the bottom of the pot. Use a spray bottle to spray the healthy/remaining leaves with water that has been mixed with a little bit of dish soap. Or if you have horticultural soap or all-season horticultural oil, you can use that (don't use dormant season horticultural oil). Also spray the surface of the soil. Let the soapy water stay in place to suffocate the mites for an hour and then rinse the leaves clean. Spider mites love hot, dry weather, so spray your foliage each day with water to keep a moist environment that will keep the population in check

Mike, if there are more webs around then that could actually be the answer... If they do not build webs then ...I don't know... just saying that I have noticed more webs around my roses in the past couple months. That might just be a coincidence however. I have sprayed them with Neem oil...
roksee

roksee said:Mike, if there are more webs around then that could actually be the answer... If they do not build webs then ...I don't know... just saying that I have noticed more webs around my roses in the past couple months. That might just be a coincidence however. I have sprayed them with Neem oil...
roksee

Yikes! Again, not sure of the temps where you live but generally, one is not supposed to use Neem oil when it is over 90 degrees. I know everyone has been roasting in CA over the past four weeks or so. I was asking about temps where you live as I agree that the leaves look "cooked." I would give the plants some shade to help them recover and see how they do. I think we are in for a "cool down" this weekend when it is only supposed to get about 100 degrees or so with temps in the early morning in the high 60's. YES! Sounds too good to be true.

ok.. got it... here the highest temps lately (a month or so) have been in the middle 80s... i live by the water so that helps cool it down a bit .
thanks for your input mike
ps i will move them .. but they are not in constant sun

can you see this clearly enough? the second one is better, I think.

well ... even though we are not 100%certain what is going on with my rose bushes, i've decided to put them in ground... the big question is .. when. I would like to 'start over ' with them but i think it's more complicated than that. Should i wait until i think they are better? That will take repotting correct? So why not put them in the ground instead? Oh this has become a very worrisome project.

I don't know that what is going on with your roses is due to them being in a pot. To me, it looks like there are several things going on. Some of the leaves look burned. Some appear to have spider mites. You last picture shows what looks like little black poop of some insect on it. I see some dead weeds around your plants and some dead leaves in other pictures. Those dead weeds and leaves can harbor pests that will attack your roses.

I would clean up the area where you have your roses first. Isolate your plants to a different part of the garden to see if the damage stops. I would also clean each of the plants with water that has a drop of soap in it to remove the oily stuff and the bugs, poop, etc., that appear on them and then again, see how your plants do.

You might want to do some research on the internet regarding roses, their diseases and bugs that attack them (if you haven't already). You might find something that we have not thought of that is the cause (or causes) of your problems.

ok.. some good ideas, mustbnuts. also, i'm wondering if you are thinking that all of the pictures above are mine? Most of those pictures are 'Mike's'..the person who was suggesting spider mites. He added those photos to show me what he was talking about. I have only 2 pics here.