The causal agent of rose rosette disease (RRD), also known as witches' broom of roses (Rosa species), is unknown, although double-stranded RNAs have been associated with diseased plants. RRD is a fatal disease of multiflora rose (R. Multiflora), designated a noxious weed in several states. It occasionally infects numerous species, hybrids and cultivars of ornamental and garden roses, grown outdoors and in greenhouses, including climbers, hybrid teas, floribundas, miniatures, and a number of antique or "old fashioned" roses. Roses are the only plant known to be susceptible to RRD. The majority of multiflora roses in the Midwest and eastern United States are expected to become infected and killed by RRD in the next 10 to 20 years. The disease was first reported in 1941 in Manitoba, Canada, Wyoming, northeastern California, and Nebraska. RRD is now endemic in much of the Midwest, where multiflora rose hedges are common; was first reported in Illinois in 1986; and is spreading naturally in the eastern United States.
Integrated Pest Management
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University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
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