@Marlorena is acknowledged here as being very knowledgeable about roses, so Ill leave the rose problem to her … but what I can say with certainty is that rose rust is specific to roses and will not be affecting your peony, which is from a different plant species.
Peony foliage begins to die down for the winter much earlier in the year than a lot of plants …. particularly in a dry year such as this. I suspect that what’s happening to your peony is perfectly normal and nothing for you to worry about.
If you’re still concerned, show us a photo and hopefully more folk will be able to join me in putting your mind at rest about at least one part of your garden. 😊
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
@Marlorena is the expert indeed , ( and @Dovefromabove knows a lot more about most things than I do!), but I agree with her that rust is host-specific, so something else affecting paeony /peony . As an aside , antifungals ( like roseclear) are effective as preventatives more than treatments - I don't use them, but regarding your question of sprayer --- you could use some kind of pump action sprayer with a lance -- example below ( no recommendation intended re make or retailer) , am sure lots of manufacturers make them, but if you want the lance type below ( vs the handheld pump sprayer ), I think about 5 litres is the min size, but in my experience the lance format is better at spraying "non upright" . You would need the concentrate form of roseclear or similar- which has the bonus of being cheaper for equivalent volume - and dilute per instructions for this.
Just spent a back-breaking couple of hours crawling about in the loft Why?
My employment was as a printer; in the early days I worked at Pan Britannic Industries (PBI) - creators of Baby Bio I printed millions of labels for that stuff among many other chemicals. I had forgotten that I had a signed set of the "Expert" series of books by Dr Hessayon (Director of PBI) and though now was the time to actually look at them.
Very dated and somewhat yellowing now but still good for base information - most of the products quoted are now banned or discontinued
Anyway, first thoughts provoked - The Rose Expert, mentions not planting under tree canopies due to toxic fall-off from them - is this a thing as my whole row of planters are somewhat overhung by trees ! They are not causing shade but the trees do encroach over our fence a fair bit when in full leaf.
I'm certainly not questioning the experts here but If there is a difference, I think i have got severe black spot and not rust so much - my reasoning is that I cannot see any orange/rust on the undersides of the leaves, just the yellow/black spots from the top. It also goes on to mention it can be made worse by a shortage of Potash in the feed (NPK) or generally being very hungry (underfed). This shortage could also lead to the crinkly edge leaves i see too.
Do any of these points ring true for my issues?
It does also say not to feed now as too late in the season - true?
I guess to wait until March then do a moderate prune (half length) on them or a hard prune???
I really just want to get off on a good start, this is the first time we have tried gardening and really have little idea apart from what my late mum passed on (serious gardener) many years back.
My 2 cents till someone smarter and/or more experienced comes along:
Under trees - not ideal , but probably more for shade and tree roots stealing nutrients & moisture from the soil reasons vs any toxic fall off specifically ( and you say they are in pots and not in shade so neither should be an issue).
Entirely feasible that you have an array of fungal diseases ( ie rust and bs and so on) plus pest damage, and drought damage.
Hard to tell from the pic , but the brown- orange patches we can see on the leaves are sun scorch / drought think hertfordshire been as dry and hot as london? If you think your peony has a similar issue , then it could well be that severe scorch/drought is the most visible part of the issue.
Fungal diseases ( if there is a cure - as I say sprays are better preventative than curative if you choose to spray) the action plan is similar regardless of the type of disease- -- plant hygiene and environmental health is important , dispose of diseased material and sanitise tools frequently when doing so.
Feeding - being in a warm(-ish) part of the country i see no reason not to feed - at half dose or some such - in mid august, but in your specific case such a stressed plant as that rose mostly needs a whole bunch of hydration before giving it meaningful food. I guess you could trim off the diseased/ burnt leaves and at the very most give it a very weak tonic if there are signs of better leaf growth once properly hydrated.
You say big pots - are they big enough? is your irrigation system sophisticated enough to work out if the pot is thoroughly hydrated or is it potentially waterlogging or barely moistening ( partic with the dessicating winds of the last few weeks).
I can't work out how big your roses are , but "half" sounds like not enough of a prune in march from current status, might be an idea to try and cut out some of the damaged growth now ( unless you already did while defoliating) and then re-prune properly in spring.
the pots are about 15"x15" and the roses are about 3' tall max.
The watering is fairly smart but not connected in a loop i.e. it does not measure the soil moisture. The soil is damp but not waterlogged and the pots all drain easily. I can add water manually if it needs but I thought damp soil was ok, any more water would run straight through.
I have pruned off a fair bit and will do some more tomorrow, especially any leaves showing signs of BS etc
Damp soil should be ok , doesn't sound underwatered if damp all the way through. Pots seem big enough too ( assuming they're same sort of depth as well ) . I think aphids can spread some fungal diseases as well . Since they are in pots -- albeit i can't see the classic vine weevil notching on the leaves , more general pest and insect damage - perhaps check for vine weevil grubs? ( my roses have them in pots , have tried nematodes with some success in managing but not eradicating, the problem ).
One of these roses was my mums and i recall my sister helping her remove all the soil and repot her flowers because they had grubs, she also used nematodes.
Maybe they have returned, i'll do some digging. The pots are round so 15" dia by 15" tall.
I thought it best to get some clearer photos up, might help all you wonderful helpers out there
These are from two different roses. Does it look like over-watering or do the symptoms of that match something else as well maybe? Its not waterlogging as the pots drain easily but over-watering is not the same as waterlogging I think.
Maybe overwatering with lack of food/not good enough food??
Posts
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Spear & Jackson 5LPAPS Pump Action Pressure Sprayer 5 Litre : Amazon.co.uk: Garden & Outdoors
My employment was as a printer; in the early days I worked at Pan Britannic Industries (PBI) - creators of Baby Bio
Very dated and somewhat yellowing now but still good for base information - most of the products quoted are now banned or discontinued
Anyway, first thoughts provoked - The Rose Expert, mentions not planting under tree canopies due to toxic fall-off from them - is this a thing as my whole row of planters are somewhat overhung by trees ! They are not causing shade but the trees do encroach over our fence a fair bit when in full leaf.
I'm certainly not questioning the experts here but If there is a difference, I think i have got severe black spot and not rust so much - my reasoning is that I cannot see any orange/rust on the undersides of the leaves, just the yellow/black spots from the top. It also goes on to mention it can be made worse by a shortage of Potash in the feed (NPK) or generally being very hungry (underfed). This shortage could also lead to the crinkly edge leaves i see too.
Do any of these points ring true for my issues?
It does also say not to feed now as too late in the season - true?
I guess to wait until March then do a moderate prune (half length) on them or a hard prune???
I really just want to get off on a good start, this is the first time we have tried gardening and really have little idea apart from what my late mum passed on (serious gardener) many years back.
So many questions and thanks all so far
Under trees - not ideal , but probably more for shade and tree roots stealing nutrients & moisture from the soil reasons vs any toxic fall off specifically ( and you say they are in pots and not in shade so neither should be an issue).
Entirely feasible that you have an array of fungal diseases ( ie rust and bs and so on) plus pest damage, and drought damage.
Hard to tell from the pic , but the brown- orange patches we can see on the leaves are sun scorch / drought think hertfordshire been as dry and hot as london? If you think your peony has a similar issue , then it could well be that severe scorch/drought is the most visible part of the issue.
Fungal diseases ( if there is a cure - as I say sprays are better preventative than curative if you choose to spray) the action plan is similar regardless of the type of disease- -- plant hygiene and environmental health is important , dispose of diseased material and sanitise tools frequently when doing so.
Feeding - being in a warm(-ish) part of the country i see no reason not to feed - at half dose or some such - in mid august, but in your specific case such a stressed plant as that rose mostly needs a whole bunch of hydration before giving it meaningful food. I guess you could trim off the diseased/ burnt leaves and at the very most give it a very weak tonic if there are signs of better leaf growth once properly hydrated.
You say big pots - are they big enough? is your irrigation system sophisticated enough to work out if the pot is thoroughly hydrated or is it potentially waterlogging or barely moistening ( partic with the dessicating winds of the last few weeks).
I can't work out how big your roses are , but "half" sounds like not enough of a prune in march from current status, might be an idea to try and cut out some of the damaged growth now ( unless you already did while defoliating) and then re-prune properly in spring.
the pots are about 15"x15" and the roses are about 3' tall max.
The watering is fairly smart but not connected in a loop i.e. it does not measure the soil moisture. The soil is damp but not waterlogged and the pots all drain easily. I can add water manually if it needs but I thought damp soil was ok, any more water would run straight through.
I have pruned off a fair bit and will do some more tomorrow, especially any leaves showing signs of BS etc
One of these roses was my mums and i recall my sister helping her remove all the soil and repot her flowers because they had grubs, she also used nematodes.
Maybe they have returned, i'll do some digging. The pots are round so 15" dia by 15" tall.
These are from two different roses. Does it look like over-watering or do the symptoms of that match something else as well maybe? Its not waterlogging as the pots drain easily but over-watering is not the same as waterlogging I think.
Maybe overwatering with lack of food/not good enough food??
Any thoughts?