Black spot, also known as Diplocarpon Rosae, can be a common challenge when growing roses. It is a fungal disease that results in black spots showing up on lower rose leaves, and working their way up resulting in the leaves yellowing and falling off. With this loss of the roses leaves, the rose plant can have a harder time photosynthesizing food, is more prone to stressors and can experience inhibited overall health and bloom production. Black spot fungal spores thrive in wet, humid conditions so to combat this it is important to make sure the roses are getting plenty of sun, air circulation through not crowding each other, and a watering system focused on hydrating roots, rather than getting leaves wet. Prevention is also an important step when combatting Black spot trouble. This could look like: Cleaning gardening tools with alcohol after pruning black spot leaves, putting down a non wetness prone mulch over the beds as well as spraying the leaves with store bought fungicidal spray or other homemade remedies. Although black spot is a challenge that impacts how the rose looks aesthetically, this disease is not good for the health of the rose.
Source Material Citation: Iannotti, Marie. “How to Treat and Prevent Black Spots on Roses.” The
Spruce, The Spruce, 8 May 2025, www.thespruce.com/black-spot-on-roses-4125530.
If you want to learn more about this informative source material here is the link!: How to Treat
and Prevent Black Spot on Roses
An additional concise website step by step article with pictures: How to Control Black Spot on
Roses (with Pictures) – wikiHow
Here’s a quick Tiktok video geared towards a younger rose enthusiast audience:
How to deal with black spot on your roses The most serious disease for… | TikTok
Want to learn even more? Here’s a longer video! Black Spot Roses Treatment
Written by: Willa Pettit, Earlham College Student & Richmond Rose Garden Volunteer
