Hi all, I have a quick question. The top leaves on my rose are a paler/lighter green than the rest of the leaves. This usually indicates a nitrogen deficiency, right?

Can you post a picture of the plant and the leaves? It always helps to see what you're talking about.

Sure! Here it is. The top part is in the sun right now, so that's why there's a big color difference between the top part and rest of the leaves. I'm thinking of getting a fertilizer with more nitrogen in it since the one I'm using right now has half as much nitrogen as potassium.

The color doesn't look that off to me ... but can we get a closer look at those lower areas where so many leaves are jammed into clumps?

Sometimes newer growth can just be a different color. Some times it's red and some times a light green. Like new growth on a lot of plants. The way tree leaves are that bright spring green early on.
Once it matures it darkens on its own.

Thanks for the replies! It's late afternoon here, so the whole plant is in the sun now. I'll post another pic in the evening since the sunlight makes the leaves such a light color.

Here's a photo of the plant without any sunlight on it. Are the leaves off color? If so, is it a nitrogen deficiency or what? Thanks!

Is that an Iceberg rose tree ? Their foliage is usually an apple green color vs. dark green.
You would probably see an improvement in it if you got it out of that nursery pot and planted it in the ground or put it in a larger pot.
It's more than likely rootbound and the soil it's planted in has been depleted of nutrients.

Yes, that's an Iceberg rose tree. So the foliage is normal? I could put it in a larger pot since the ground beneath it is cement. Do you recommend waiting and potting it up in the fall or winter, when the growing season is over and it becomes dormant? I heard that's the best time to repot since there's less shock.

If you're in 10a California, I'd give it more space for roots as soon as you can do so. In the heat of summer, it's going to really suffer.

It needs to have AT LEAST as much room for its roots as it does for the top growth ... which means, if you're going to keep it in a pot, it needs a MUCH bigger pot.

For one thing, the windy season isn't that far off, and in that pot, it's going to spend most of its time lying flat on the ground.

So pot it up, giving it more room, and give it some shade for a bit. Make sure it's well-watered.

Got it! I keep finding conflicting info on the internet about this: are you supposed to water before or after repotting? Thanks!

I would water it well the day before and then again after repotting. Being hydrated before the move will help with any transplant shock.

Okay, I will! Thank you all!

What Seil said.

Hi all, I'm back with an update. So I repotted my rose almost a week ago. It felt like its size got bigger and the leaves seemed wider. It was doing great up until two days ago, when it started to get droopy. I think it's because of transplant shock, so I've started misting it once daily during the hot afternoons to help with water loss through the leaves. I haven't seen any improvement yet. The soil is moist right now, so I'm planning on waiting a day to water. I put my rose in the shade from 2-4 pm today. Is there anything I can do to help my rose recover? Thank you!

Keep doing what your doing and give it a chance to recoup. Lots of water and no fertilizer until you see it start to put on some new growth.

Got it! Do you recommend pruning it so it has less foliage to support?

No, not now. It needs the foliage to produce food so let it be. It just needs to rest and recuperate.

Like all of us.
David

Okay, great!