Spindly Roses

Healthy roses display strong canes.

Healthy roses display strong canes.

Prized for their graceful appearance in the home garden, roses provide classic beauty not only with their full blossoms, but with their sturdy canes. When you notice your roses have taken on a spindly, leggy appearance, something is amiss. Whether you are overlooking a simple care problem or an underlying disease, you can help your roses return to their naturally strong, vibrant presence.

General Care

Provide consistent, appropriate care to your roses. Healthy plants have a greater ability to avoid and spring back from illnesses than neglected, unhealthy plants. Grow your roses in areas that offer full sunlight for best growth and flower development. Maintain moist, well-drained soil high in organic content. Apply a 2- to 3-inch layer of organic mulch to the soil surrounding your roses without pressing the mulch against plant stems. Mulch helps conserve moisture, keeps weeds at bay and lowers soil pH; roses prefer a soil pH of 6.0 to 7.0.


Spindly roses are often the result of poor circulation due to crowded conditions. Your roses will not receive adequate air or sun when they are spaced too closely with other plants. Additionally, if you do not prune your rosebushes, they become overgrown and weak. When sun is not able to reach the center of your roses, they become "leggy" or "spindly" instead of robust. The damaged canes weaken the rest of the plant, leading to diminished health and a poor shape.


If your roses are pruned and receive adequate sunlight but they appear spindly, they are likely infected with black spot. The spindly appearance is often due to defoliation as a result of the black spot disease as well as an overall weakened, unhealthy state. Black spot is a fungal disease caused by the fungal pathogen Diplocarpon rosae. The disease first shows up as black spots on rose leaves and stems. Yellow halos occasionally surround the black spots. As the disease progresses, leaves drop, health diminishes and plants may die.


To rectify poor circulation, space your roses appropriately and prune them. Space your roses about 2 feet apart or at a distance of about two-thirds of their final height, according to the University of Illinois Extension. To avoid spindly growth, prune away dead or damaged canes or those that appear much larger than others so sun can reach all parts of your plant. You may remove up to one-third of the canes annually. Prune damaged or weakened canes back to the ground; prune top growth to the crotch, according to the Colorado State University Cooperative Extension. For black spot control, avoid overhead irrigation, which promotes the development of fungal disease. For a natural approach, cover your rose plant with neem oil. If you expect black spot disease, prevent an infection by applying a fungicide with an active ingredient such as chlorothalonil during the beginning of spring.

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