It seems that I lurk here all year and right around this time of year, post here in a panic trying to keep my hair on straight.

Background:

I am in zone 6a-5b; have 4 roses : 2 Abe Darby's, 1 Wise Portia and 1 Glamis Castle. Have had two other roses that sadly never made it. My roses get about 6-8 hours of sun but sadly, only starting about 10:30 or 11:00am. They are planted in the front of my Southerly facing house, so they are shaded by the house in the early morning and get sun only after it comes around. Little I could do about that when I planted because that was the side of the house that got closest to the recommended minimum 6 hours of sun. They seem to have taken to the locale; the Abe Darby's are closing in on 8 feet tall, throwing new canes and new growth galore, have heaps of roses and loads of leaves every year; WP and GC are small bushes but have loads of flowers, leaves and grow new canes regularly (this is GC's second year in the ground with me).

My problem:
Partly because of the location, i think, the roses tend to get blackspot and get it early. I have tried to stick to a regimen of organic or light treatment and have only given them the Bon-Neem treatment - but am not sure how good that is for BS prevention. I have cleared winter's mulch, given them new compost, organic fertiliser (rose-tone), new peat-moss-ish mulch but I am seeing some early onset BS already.

Yesterday, I decided to see if I could get some respite with something a bit different and applied the copper fungicide. So copper-salt powder mixed in water and sprayed on the plants. Well, once the water dried, I am left with these yellow-blue splotches on the roses.

My questions:
Basically, are these my options? Either black spots or yellow-blue ones?
Thanks in advance to recommendations to shovel prune and get different plants but I'm looking to see what I can do to protect the plants I do have in as sustainable a way I can do so. What are my options for a relatively non-toxic, non-poisonous way of life that can benefit my roses by developing their natural resistance; or at least not slaying the little bit of eco-sphere around here?

Oh secondly, if I do have to live with the yellow spots, do the copper fungicides work; are they harmful to the plant or will i have devastated my beautiful roses?

Thank you in advance for any suggestions. I have read and read about BS and while I read that the Bayer Advanced Disease Control is recommended, I also read about the organic options and can't help but want to try the organic solutions before committing to the chemical. I'd love to know if I should be able to expect any real help from the organics or if they are just a pipe dream.

Roses are a fetish that I never thought I'd develop but develop I have. We've got rid of some trees towards the back (well, weeds more than trees really - Norway Maples which are rampant here and want to grow in every chink in the landscaping armour you might reveal, regardless how irresponsible the location) and am looking greedily to see how much I can stake out for more roses here and there (disease resistant ones this time).

I use Rose Tone and I also like organic liquid fertilizers as a soil drench. I think that a healthy soil helps the roses have strong growth, even with blackspot present in the garden.

I've never used copper fungicides, don't know what effect this might have on roses.

I grow a number of Austins, and love them, they are wonderful roses.

From my experience with copper salts (Kocide), though on thuja orientalis and not on roses - the stuff is very effective, but the bluish coating remains even when it rains.

You'll probably have to re-spray, so if you opt for copper salts it's going to be blue spots instead of black.

In my case there was vigorous new growth which eventually hid the bluish one as the plants picked up. Perhaps that'll be the case with your roses as well. It takes time, though. Good luck!

Apply copper fungicides when they will dry promptly, not in cool drippy weather when they may damage foliage. Sulfur can damage foliage in hot weather or when the plants are short of water.

Krista, you must have the strength of Job for being able to ignore the BS leaves! I aspire to that!

KSGreenman and WinterCat, I should have specified that I used the powdered formulation. I have used the premixed copper soap spray and when I ran out and tried to get more, the options at the shop were the liquid concentrate and the powder formulation both of which were to be dilued in water. Well, the powder is what I went with that left the yellow-blue deposits on the leaves. WinterCat, I didn't get the Kocide; and this thing says that it should be reapplied after it rains as it does wash off. We'll see. Either way, I'm pleased to hear your comments that it is effective. Perhaps my roses will be able to forestall their BS infestation until later in the season. Last year they started altogether too early when I was still in insect combat mode (there is a winter moth infestation in the Boston parts). I'm hoping for a bit better control this year and your comments make me a bit more hopeful that I might have put off the infestation a bit.
How frequently do you reapply?

Michael, your comment worries me. When you say it is probably no safer than the Tebucanazole, do you mean while applying it or to animal life afterwards? (Either worries me, but I'd just like to know). I did use the micronized sulphur last year but again wasn't sure of either efficacy or general safety and made the assumption that a copper sulphate would be gentler all around to sulphur.

It sounds from what you say that sulphur would be the better agent to use when it is still cool and that copper better when it is hot? Is that right?
What is your opinion on the Neem stuff? Is it effective against BS? The spray itself says it helps protect against insects and Powdery Mildew which is really not much of a problem for me, so, although I have used the Neem spray a couple of times to combat the insects against which it was decidedly effective, when I saw a few leaves with BS, I thought I'd switch to something that at least explicitly said it tackled BS. Wondering if you agree with this rationale?

Plants, animals, and humans need tiny amounts of copper as a nutrient, but large amounts are toxic. Copper can accumulate in the liver to a harmful degree. I am pretty sure this would not happen from spraying, even over a long period, provided you follow the basic precautions (cover up). There is also a possibility that regular use of copper over a long time (decades) could lead to a buildup in the soil.

Here, I have used sulfur all season with no burning; you probably have a similar mild summer climate (80s) in MA. Just be sure the soil is moist and spray in the morning. You have to spray regularly (preventatively) and not let the disease get way ahead of you. Copper may be more effective, though.

The stuff may well wash off rose leaves. It stuck to the thuja possibly because its leaves aren't smooth.

I applied every week. I sprayed from all directions, so as to cover the lower side of the foliage as well.