Welcome to the Forum! Sorry. I don't have a definite answer. But I know strong winds can have a drying effect on roses. Neem oil will burn leaves if they are exposed to hot, direct sunlight after spraying. I can't think of much more. But I did want to congratulate you on choosing the most rewarding hobby ever. Thanks for growing beautiful roses. Our environment needs it. You will Learn a lot on this site. I have truly been educated on rose growing here.

How close are you to the coast? Salt spray can travel far in high winds and damage plants.

Cath

It was probably the Neem with the winds. I'm thinking you might not live too far away from Denise in Yachats. I went to her rose nursery years ago. I think it's called Rose and Thorn, right off of highway one. She knows well the challenge of growing roses on the Oregon coast. It would be a fun visit for you and I know she'd be helpful.
Welcome to the forum.

Having considerable experience with Deer in the PNW, I can assure you that a six foot tall fence will NOT deter Deer from entering your yard, especially if they spot roses (IE: "Deer Candy"). The minimum recommended height for Deer fencing is 8 feet, which is what I have done here. And yet, when they have felt the need to get into my yard, I have seen them jump over the 8 foot fence with relative ease, to spend a leisurely hour mowing off hundreds of flowers and buds. In general, they won't make the effort to scale the 8 foot fence, but once in a while they will be tempted beyond reason.....

Thank you for the welcome, and for your responses. We are about 1000 feet from the ocean. The salt air and wind may very well be the cause of the damaged leaves. And the neem oil did not help. Mendocino rose, we are over an hour north of Yachats. Thank you for this contact. That will be a special rose trip to look forward to! I am going to have to find a substitute spray if neem oil will damage the leaves. Last summer I used a 3 in 1 all purpose granular systemic that was quite effective in insects and fungus..but then I read on this forum that that particular insecticide/fungicide/fertilizer was only used by novices and that it was not a good solution. So, this year I will try to treat individual issues with more appropriate applications, and use a more effective fertilizer. The main issue I dealt with, until fall fungus issues, was saw fly, I think. The grafted rose bushes had done very well and were big and bushy and the leaves were being eaten. I found rolled leaves and leaves webbed together with big whitish worm/caterpillars inside. When I bumped several of the rose bushes insects would fly out. But, I never could see any small worms on the underside of the leaves. This problem was my most serious last summer. Black spot arrived in late September after a wet week of rain. But all in all it was a special summer. We are watching the bands grow and most of them bloomed at least once. We spent every minute we could outside in the garden and enjoyed the color and fragrance!

Trospero, Yikes, I am keeping my fingers crossed. Our neighbors also warn us the deer will jump our fence. We moved here from West Linn, Oregon, and we had deer there too...one of the reasons I gave up gardening. They did not get into the fenced area last summer, but they did lay right outside the fence in our neighbors barkdust, and roamed all through the rest of our yard eating everything they could. We sprayed with Deer Fence and that kept them away from special plants, but we fear they will get used to that and chomp away on everything.

Welcome to the forum, barbjo. I hope you'll enjoy your experience here. I know I have, and have learned so much and met many wonderful and very helpful people here. My garden is inland, hot and dry, very different from the situations you'll encounter where you live. Fortunately I don't have deer here, and I know they can be a huge challenge. My garden is strictly organic, and my way of dealing with disease has been to eliminate the roses that consistently show signs of it, and learn which roses thrive here without spraying. It's taken a while, but it's been very rewarding to see all the beneficial insects and creatures that populate the garden. I wish you good luck with your garden, and much enjoyment from seeing your small roses mature and bloom.

Ingrid

Barbjo, good luck with your coastal gardening adventures and please keep us updated regarding progress. Salt and winds at the coast can be trying for roses. Rugosas do quite well in the harsh conditions and are thorny (read "somewhat more deer resistant"). Others may do just fine as well. Deer are so cute and magical...and voracious. Carol in Portland

Thank you, shopshops, cath41,mendocino rose, trospero, ingrid vc, and Portland Mystery Rose for the welcome and much appreciated advice! I am looking forward to being environmentally responsible in my garden...even if I do not like to squish big worm things. And since I have started reading this forum, I am trying to limit my rose purchases to more disease resistant varieties. I will have to research the rugosa roses. I planted one rugosa several years ago in a garden of a part time home we have here (now vacant and for sale). I loved the fragrant white flowers, but the bush was scraggly and wild looking. But you are right, Portland Mystery Rose, the deer did not touch it. Maybe I can find some rugosa roses that will be more appealing. I am excited for spring! So many roses coming, and I am anxious to see how the Heirloom bands grow this year!

Barbjo, there are some lovely rugosas and most are deliciously fragrant! Just invest in some gauntlet gloves and a Carharrt jacket before pruning...or use a long lopper. :-) Suzanne Verrier wrote a book called Rosa Rugosa which can be purchased second hand from Powell's and other sources. It's a good intro to the variety. If I lived at the coast, I'd also grow Rosa gallica varieties. (Verrier has another book on those.) Both rugosas and gallicas are low maintenance, prefer not to be sprayed and never seem to require spraying. On their own roots, both spread via stolons popping up in the vicinity of the mother plants but I grow them that way and just shovel up the extras and make more roses to keep and share. I've found damask and alba varieties to be tough and truly sublime and would give those a shot as well. Once again, own-root plants tend to spread, although certain gallicas are the most assertive roses in my garden. Cecile Brunner and Perle d'Or seem to thrive in Seaside and Canon Beach so I'd try those lovely everblooming polyantha/China roses. I'm so glad you joined the forum! The coast is beautiful and a great place to garden in spite of a few challenges. I did my student teaching in West Linn, by the way. Carol

Oh, I should add that the alba Queen of Denmark is really thorny as are damasks like Botzaris. The old rose Stanwell Perpetual is positively formidable and I do get some rebloom on my older plant.
If you like purple, Basye's Purple is gorgeous and not to be missed! A rugosa hybrid. Ouch! Sorry, deer. :-)

I have found that a 6 foot fence plus a barking dog is a good deer deterrent, most of the time, anyway.

Six feet will work if the fence is opaque. Deer will usually not jump blind where they cannot see the landing place.

Folly

Rosefolly, sounds like we need a barking dog. Our fence is not opaque, it is black and looks like wrought iron, but it is aluminum. And for whatever reason, so far, the deer have not jumped. If they do, we just may get a dog! PortlandMysteryRose, thank you for specific rose suggestions. I am excited about Perle d'or. Researched this rose and I love the look of the bush with the darker buds. I was afraid it might get too big. But I am going to order it and take a chance. And Stanwell Perpetual. I do not not how that one escaped my order list...I meant to order it, so will add that one to my order also. I have ordered several hybrid musks including, Penelope, Francesca, and Cornelia. Also several noisettes, the bourbon-china, Maggie, and the moss rose, Alfred de Dalmas. My spring order also includes Hybrid Teas and Austins. We had better start digging planting holes now!! I will order both of the books you suggested...my degree is in English..and I love Powell's Books!! Both of our daughters graduated from West Linn and we have one grand daughter, now in college, and a grandson, a high school sophomore, who are products of West Linn Schools. I hope you enjoyed your student teaching there. This is a great forum! Rosefolly, I enjoy seeing the pictures you post of your home and garden! You have a gorgeous setting for your lovely home and garden. And PortlandMysteryRose, your pictures of your front entry garden and home are wonderful. The colors, textures and combinations you have put together are breathtaking. Barbara

Thank you, Barbara! Carol

I can't give you any advice but I just wanted to say hello and welcome you to our little garden spot, Barbjo! I look forward to hearing all about your rose adventure and hopefully seeing pictures too!

Barbjo, one rugosa-type rose from David Austin is Wild Edric, which is not scraggly but forms a rounded bush with beautiful bright green foliage and full-petaled and fragrant flowers in purplish tones. Heirloom Roses is offering it and other Austin roses at a discount should you be interested. I have two and have ordered two more, and I have to say they have the best-looking foliage in my garden with not a speck of disease.

Ingrid

Seil, thank you for the welcome. I enjoy the pictures you post of your roses and have enjoyed seeing pictures of your beautiful white snowy garden. Ingrid, thank you for your Wild Edric suggestion...I have thought about this rose, but after my rugosa experience shied away from ordering it. You have a beautiful garden! If you like Wild Edric in your in your garden I want to try it in mine! Hope it does not require a hot climate. Another rugosa that is tempting is Sir Thomas Lipton. Any feed back on Sir Thomas Lipton and any other roses and class of roses is appreciated! Barbara