Neal ....
>>>Lynn, seeing all those glossy new leaves makes me giddy! We're having a good spring for roses and they're looking extra happy.
Yes, I am having a good spring this year. The photos I am putting up for Rose Week were taken in prior years because my roses may be full of buds, but they have not popped yet this year ...
Any day, now.
>>>I see something odd each spring on all 4 plants of 'The Fairy' (3 in one bed, 1 in a completely different location). As new foliage emerges, it looks very yellow like it is nitrogen deficient. In years past I have used soluble fertilizer or Ironite and quickly remedied the problem. This year I just observed, because everything else in the beds, including other roses, looks great. Now the foliage is greening up and looking healthy, although I've done nothing. What would cause that? In only that variety?
Yellow leaves are not necessarily a sign of nitrogen deficiency. It simply means that the rose is abandoning the leaf because that leaf will not serve its function of photosynthesis. There are a lot of variables that can create the conditions for a rose to discard leaves. If you are living in a climate with temperature changes during the spring, you may have had a period of a slight thaw and the rose will leaf out. Then temps drop and the rose will no longer put energy in supporting foliage. Some roses are more sensitive to even slight temperature changes, while others will hang onto their leaves longer.
In spring, in many climates, that's no big deal. Photosynthesis in roses is most effective at 70F and above on a regular basis. Since the leaves are not providing food for the plant, the rose really isn't going to use its plant energy to support that foliage.
Other variables that cause a rose to abandon foliage ... and this list is not all inclusive .. are too much moisture in the root zone so that a portion of the root mass has been damaged and the plant wants to replace those roots before it maintains foliage, not enough water causes the same thing, disease, too much nitrogen and the plant has burned feeder roots, the maturity of the plant and lots more.
Yellow leaves simply mean that the rose is not going to support that foliage.
Yes, it's worth a look to see why a plant has yellow leaves, but it doesn't necessarily mean that the plant is in trouble unless you are seeing it all over the plant.
'The Fairy' is a solid rose. It should be good for you.
Smiles,
Lyn
