Question
Can you suggest a systemic fungicide to help with the fact my 20 rose bushes lost leaves this year; not yellow spot, but something caused this to happen.  Nice blooms though.
I will apply triple phosophate and lime this fall.
Charlotte, NC

Answer
A rose drops off all its leaves for two reason. One is to conserve water for the roots when it is too dry and the other is because of stress such as newly planted or a sudden change in weather usually high heat. If the leaves did not turn yellow or brown, then something happened to disturb the roots such as animals or a root disease. Most soils have enough phosphate and lime in them for a rose to do well so I would be careful before adding triple amounts of the chemical as that can lock up the process of the roots and really cause a problem. If you have 20 bushes and most dropped their leaves then it is a weather or water condition. I think you will find that next year your rose bushes will do well. Using a systemic fungicide will also not solve the problem because if you did have an insects infestation, with that amount of roses you would really have seen the bugs. I honestly think it was a weather condition that caused the roses to go into stress. Hybrid teas will even do this if they are given fertilizers when the temperatures are hot. The fact that you had nice blooms tells me your roses are okay.