I have one rosebush that has developed an odd growth. Does anyone know what this is & will it spread? Is it something I should be concerned about?

Are you sure that's a rose bush? I've never seen or heard of anything like this.

They look like spiny rose galls to me, although I've never seen them with such long spines! Is it a wild rose?

Here's an article on them. Another from the U of Washington says they don't actually harm the plant.

http://forums.gardenweb.com/fo...

Wow, this is new to me. The wasps around here spend all of their time creating unsightly structures. These galls are downright ornamental.

I have gall wasps in my garden, too. I haven't researched them because when I finally come back in from the garden, I am too pooped for research ... lol.

I generally just clip them off because they impair the function of the leaf and have never seen them appear on the same rose again. I have no idea if the galls contain eggs for more gall wasps.

Smiles,
Lyn

I'm jealous; I want some!

Thank you Elaine! That is exactly what it is. I had no clue.
I went from having no roses at all to having about a dozen within a day... lol A lady had posted on a local facebook rummage page that she wanted to give away her rose bushes. The previous owner must of loved and cared for them dearly over the last 30 years or so. It made me sad that the new owners were planning on throwing the remaining ones away, so we dug and hauled these huge bushes home as many as we could and there were still several left in her yard. . They are pretty and I do hope they make it through the winter.

Great way to get yourself a rose garden, Sass. For winter, just mulch, mulch, mulch those babies!

Sassafrass - You lucky girl! Wow! Those are some beautiful roses there.. mulch & water them nicely and they should be just fine! That's another reason why I don't want to ever move.. I can just see someone ripping out all my roses that I've put painstaking time/blood/sweat/tears into! (especially the blood part)

I've seen galls on scrub oak, but never spiny galls before. Yikes! But they look super cool!