I have two rose bushes in front of my house.
I am not an expert gardener, but I prefer not to use chemicals because there is a breeding population of western fence lizards that reproduce on my property (I've even had the pleasure of watching the courtship and mating process) and I really do like reptiles - and I do not want to do _anything_ that might harm them. Especially during the season when they lay eggs (the eggs are leathery and do in fact absorb from the environment) and when the eggs hatch - as baby lizards are very small and eat very small bugs.
So that's why I'm in this forum.
At any rate - I was setting up a drip watering system, and I noticed one rose bush had an absolutely awful infestation of bugs that I think are aphids. They are green, and the leaves they are on are very sticky. That bush only has one blooming rose right now. I used the hose to spray them off, but I didn't get all of them.
The other rose bush I am not finding any aphids on - but some of the branches have a white substance on them that wipes off easily - and could either be really small bugs, or a fungus. This rose bush is blooming like crazy.
I'm going to buy several containers of lady bugs and set them loose in the rose bushes - but I'm wondering what else I can do about the aphids and the white substance.
I have a third rose bush, it has neither aphids nor this white stuff (that I could see anyway) - and *hopefully* it'll stay that way. It's also started blooming, but it's a different species (smaller flowers) and maybe is a species that is more resiliant?
Last year - none of the bushes had aphids or this white stuff.
-=-
I'll be getting a macro ring flash soon, if the white substance on the branches (not leaves, branches) is still there in a month - I'll photograph it with my Canon 100/2.8 EF macro lens and post a picture for easier identification of what it is. | 
