Q: My rose bush is acting weird. It started last summer when a few of the stems shot up past the other normal stems. I had several roses for many years. At first I thought I used too much fertilizer and would buy some new cut roses; however, the stems reached the end and didn't bloom at all.

The same issue is happening again, but the plant has fewer stems than in the past. It appears to be dying, and I don't want it to affect my other rose plants.
What should I do?

A: I think your rose has a viral disease. Known as rose rosette virus, it is a common disease on some wild roses like Multiflora rose. It is fatal and can spread to nearby roses. It is unknown how it is spread, but mites and aphids are the most likely culprits.

As you noted, the first thing that many people see is the fast growth of the stems, which at first seems desirable. At the end of the long new branch there is often a cluster of rose flowers, but a sure sign of a problem is the dense growth of thorns on the stem. The stems' leaves are often deformed and discolored.

You have seen that the plant declined from last year, and I would expect it to die this summer. Remove it as soon as possible. Spray all the nearby roses with an insecticide and a miticide to help prevent the spread of the virus by these means, as the bad 'bugs' will move to the healthy plants from the dying plant. There is no other treatment for the virus.

Q: I found poison ivy in my flower bed. I did some searching and found it in a large clump in my woods as well as growing up two tall trees. In the trees, the trunk of the vine, which is about 2 inches in diameter, is the only accessible part. In the clump, there are many good plants intermingled within the poison ivy.
What is the best way to remove it all? Can I just cut it down and pour stump killer on it?

A: You will be trying to do three things at the same time. One - keep from contacting the poison ivy and herbicide with your bare skin. Two - put herbicide on the poison ivy. And three - avoid putting herbicide on the good plants.

I would use Roundup or a similar total plant-killing herbicide. It only works on green material; therefore, if you spill, it won't soak into the soil and kill more plants. The problem with a stump killer material is soaking into the stump wood and decaying the wood, not killing living things. It also can be hard to prevent harm to the tree roots you are tying to protect, if you pour it on the ground.

For the poison ivy growing on the tree trunks, you have no way of treating the poison ivy leaves, which the herbicide needs to contact to be effective, without hitting the leaves of the trees and possibly drifting the herbicide all over the neighborhood. Cut the vine trunk off down low and again on a ladder, above where people might contact it in the future. Remove the middle section. The rest of the upper vine will die and remain out of reach until someone cuts the tree down. The roots will send up new growth, which will be easy to spray. Treat the new sprouts with the herbicide weekly until they stop coming up. It won't just re-sprout next to the tree trunk - the roots can sprout new stems where they are growing, which can be many feet away from the tree. Look for new sprouts all over the area.

In the wooded area, you can spray the leaves of the poison ivy carefully to avoid hitting the good plants. This will most effectively soak into the roots. Another way is to wear rubber gloves and long sleeves. If you need to reach deep into the wild plants to treat the poison ivy leaves, wear eye protection and a hat. Use a rag or sponge soaked in the herbicide solution prepared according to directions. Wipe it on the ivy leaves, keeping it off the good plant leaves as much as possible. Wash off your clothes and gloves with soap and water. You will have to be careful not to wipe away sweat or touch anything where the sap could stick and be picked up on the skin later.

A less efficient method of treating the poison ivy clump would be to cut it first, and then spray the new sprouts. Many of the sprouts will be hidden under the good plants. The longer they grow without being sprayed, the harder they will be to kill. Spraying all the existing leaves will kill more roots. Once the stems are dead and no new sprouts are coming up, you can decide if you want to pull out or cut off the dead stalks.

It is the oil of the poison ivy plant, found in all parts of the plant, that causes skin irritation. Wash away oil with a detergent. If it is only washed in water, the oil might float around and not rinse away. Anything the oil contacts in the future could transfer the oil to someone's skin. If you wash the skin with soap and water, the oil will go away; however, the appearance of the irritated skin may become visible later. Skin-drying agents like rubbing alcohol or baking soda can also stop the oil.

Poison ivy and poison oak can either grow as vines that develop on other plants or as freestanding shrubs. As a vine, they can grow to the top of a large tree and have a base stem of 5 inches in diameter. They spread by seeds that birds deposit. They can sprout up years later, so keep an eye out for new plants the next few years.

Throw the cuttings away in a sealed bag. Never burn these plants or even logs with the vine wrapped on it. The sap can evaporate into the smoke and coat other things (like lawn furniture) that will give you a rash. Even worse, you could get the oily smoke on your skin or even breathe it in to your throat and lungs.

E-mail questions to Jeff Rugg, Kendall County unit educator, University of Illinois Extension at jrugg@uiuc.edu.