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Why You Should Be Watering Your Rose Plants With Milk
By KATE NICHOLSON
Black spot, a dreaded fungal disease, is the bane of every rose gardener, but spraying a mixture of water and cow’s milk on your plants may prevent or inhibit its growth.
All recipes to prevent black spot growth suggest mixing milk with water, but the ratios vary from a 1:1 milk-to-water ratio to a far more diluted 1:10 ratio using organic milk.
Whichever way you mix it, apply your milk-based rose plant spray weekly from spring through fall to maximize its potential preventative benefits.
In the morning, cover both sides of the leaves and the stems with the spray, and leave the mixture on your plants for 24 hours or so before washing them off with fresh water.
Evidence for the efficacy of black spot milk treatment is mixed. American gardening author and expert Jeff Gillman promotes the method as a preventative, not a cure.