IMHO, has nothing to do with Verticellium from what I see. Just doesn't look like the pattern. The leaf spots are likely due to wet weather IMHO, giving something an advantage over the tree. Leaves are rarely perfect this time of year, so unless it gets allot worse, I would not worry about the spots at this point. While I don't know if jean has the right pathogen (would require more extensive testing(, I do think they have the right ideal. Namely that it is something that got into a small wound etc. Your pictures seem to chow that it is working top downward. As for what to do about it, as indicated before, it looks like your doing exactly what needs to be done. That is pruning out to well below the affected area, with proper disposal of pruned material (i.e. burned or in the trash, but not in compost). As for the mulch, it probable has nothing to do with it. However I will say this about cypress mulch. From what I have been told, in many cases this mulch is obtained by removing entire tree from the swamp ecosystem for no other purpose than to make mulch. At this point the ecosystem is often so disturbed that seedling cypress do not survive. It is for this reason I don't use cypress mulch any longer. Arktrees

Well, against my husband's wishes, I drove down to Costco and grabbed a table. Crazy but for $85, what the heck. (I had my daughter help me get it out of the car.) A couple hours later, as I was writing the CL ad, a gardening friend stopped by. She wants the table. Sold! Incredible. I decided to keep the original chairs because they are so darned comfortable and I haven't found anything better yet. I know that if I sell then and make DH sit on something small and stackable, like I want for aesthetic and functional reasons, he will complain. If the right chairs throw themselves in front of me, I'll get them, But in the meantime, we have something to sit on. Here's the funny part: The umbrella is bronze, the chairs are graphite and the new table is that silvery color. Oy! I contemplated spraypaint, but have decided this is a great opportunity for me to get off it and just live with mismatched. I don't have matchy matchy anywhere else, so maybe I can live with it on the patio. An opportunity for personal growth... The best part is that the new table will tuck into the corner where I won't have to look at the whole array from every darned window, like I did with the gigantic rectangular table. "What do you mean they don't match? I can't even see the furniture..." ;-)

Hi Brownthumb - uh-oh, indeed! Don't you live somewhere near me? I had a slight panic.... I was out of town for the weekend and when I came home this evening, I went outside to check on the hostas that are planted in the ground, and I don't have anything happening. I sort of brushed around in the mulch and soil a little bit, and there was nothing coming up. Whew! I'll bet it's some leftover lily-of-the-valley! Aren't there some hostas that emerge earlier than others? I think this would be extra-early though. The only ones I have in-ground so far are: Cathedral Windows, Rainforest Sunrise and Rhino Hide - I know RS isn't early because last year I was wondering if they had died and then they suddenly appeared. I don't know which are generally early, tho. I did notice that my wild daylilies (are they called ditch-lilies?) are starting to emerge from under their dried foliage that I left there until spring (a bit like your picture).... And I've heard that some bulbs are poking up around here, but I don't have any bulbs planted yet. I'll bet you have nothing to worry about. If it is hosta, I'm wondering if there's anything to do about it? Mulch?

Hi, Swamprose. I hope this reply shows up. I can't see it on my computer screen, but it shows up on my phone. Houzz just gets weirder and weirder! I'm sending spring sympathy! Who knows what evil lurks as winter's curtain is raised?... My climate is temperate rainforest (with major heat waves now), but back when I lived in MN, I used to see winter damage that looked like your photos. Were your roses in pots that were exposed all during cold season? I think HMF reports zone 5 for SdlM, but I'd call 6 her lower end of tolerance. I believe Paul Barden's site says zone 6 and 5 with protection. She might be an in-ground rose in your zone. Your BQ looks fantastic! I can hardly wait to see photos of her gorgeous blooms! I grew RdR in MN. It's a pretty darn tough and hardy variety in my experience, but mine was planted in a bed. I think both RdR and CdR are rated zone 4ish, so they might handle being potted. The little poly may need protection, though. If you have bubble wrap lying around for reuse, it makes a wonderful pot wrapper and liner. Added to my reply as I submit again in hopes that this all gets posted: I have also seen canes and leaves that resemble yours when pots are not draining well, as mentioned by Jackie and others. My potted roses that resembled yours contained straight garden soil instead of potting soil (don't ask how that happened), but I've also had to fuss with perfectly lovely potting mixes off and on because the combo of weather conditions and ingredients just became too compacted. You might try cutting off the yellow and brown canes and then mixing in planting materials which up the drainage. From one zone and garden placement pusher and potted rose grower to another, I'm sending lots of kindred spirt and well wishes! Carol