Bareroot Roses Yellow Cane Base

5 years ago

Hello everyone. As I have stated in a prior thread, I am new to bareroot roses. That said, I noticed that the bareroot roses that I planted from Jackson and Perkins (which as stated in the previous post had new growth that immediately dried up) have cane bases that are starting to yellow. I stuck a pole into the ground to check soil moisture at root depth but could not detect soggy soil, and I know that yellowing leaves oftentimes means overwatering. But what do yellowing canes mean? Some of the roses I got from J&P actually had yellowing bases from the start. I'm hoping that it's not an issue. Thanks in advance.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (2)

K S 7b Little Rock (formerly of Seattle)
5 years ago
Hi Superteeth, that sounds bad. Perhaps a picture would help us understand your problem. I can't tell you for sure what is causing it -- whether it is the weather, the way you planted these bare roots, the plants themselves perhaps being in poor condition when you got them, the watering conditions, or an issue with the soil where they are planted. Maybe they are just going through "a phase" and will be healthy soon enough. It is probably worth contacting the seller and reporting this. Maybe they can send replacements (though that won't help if the weather is the problem). Are they in full sun? Sometimes it helps to give bare roots a bit of protection from the sun until they have successfully leafed out. How often are you watering them? What is your soil like? How much sun do they get? What has your weather been like lately?

On a happy note, I once bought a bare root VERY late in the season, on sale, and potted it up. I was sure it was dead -- it showed no sign of life. Meanwhile, all of my other roses were leafed out and blooming. I was ready to throw it away, but habitually watered it along with my other potted roses until I could get around to tossing it in the compost. Sometime around mid summer the rose resurrected and is still going strong today. They are tough plants, and sometimes will surprise you.
Superteeth (Elgin, TX 8b) thanked K S 7b Little Rock (formerly of Seattle)
Superteeth (Elgin, TX 8b)
Original Author
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
They are in full sun right now, so I guess I should give them some sun protection right now. I did water them every day as per instructions, but I also checked the soil moisture to ensure they weren't getting soggy (the soil is mostly clay so it retains water better than most). Come to think of it it'd probably have been best to pot them up so that I could keep them in a shaded area at least until they leafed out properly and had built a root system...I am new to bare root roses though and if they don't make it this time I guess that will be another lesson learned the hard way!

They've already attempted to leaf out (they were breaking dormancy in the box) and failed miserably, so they should be working on growing roots now rather than on attempting to leaf out. I wouldn't think a soil issue would manifest so quickly but I guess it's possible. The weather has mostly been sunny but we are having cloudy weather and rain right now, so I guess it's good for reducing sun exposure for the plants.

Did the one you thought was dead have fried buds and dead canes on it? The canes on mine aren't dead, but the new growth did die off before sprouting fully. Thanks for the input.
Related Discussions
Canes yellowing...
Q
Comments (8)
If this is the one rose which consistently blows over in the wind, I would take that to mean this pot is too small for this rose. Upsizing to the next larger size (at least) seems a good idea to me. Drainage does sound like your primary issue. Fix that and you may just fix the plant. Yes, your manure pellets CAN help cause the yellowing canes with reduced drainage. In the other pots, where water flows easily through the soil, pushing out the "exhaust gases" and drawing in oxygen, the roses can make use of the fertilizers and grow. In reduced drainage, the roots are stressed, and can actually drown. The "exhaust gases" which are exhaled by the roots, are not being pushed from the soil as efficiently by the flowing water because it isn't flowing sufficiently. As a consequence, insufficient oxygen is drawn into the root zone. Imagine you trying to breathe into a plastic bag with a small hole poked in it to let in a bit of oxygen, but not as much as you need. Now, add that manure you've applied to the mix. Too much water, being held too long; insufficient oxygen to the roots and carbon dioxide and perhaps other rotting gases being held in the root zone in too high concentrations; then the whole being stressed more by poop being added. Until all that is fixed, the plant is going to continue turning yellow until it reaches the point of no return, when it will simply die. Seil's suggestion of a plant trolly, bricks or other supports to elevate the pot bottom from the surface is good and works very well. Due to your obviously greater wind issue, you may wish to keep the spacers shorter and thinner, like a few pieces of porcelain bath tile. You don't need a lot of space between the pot bottom and the surface, but you do need some to keep the holes from clogging as easily. The taller/thicker the things you put under that pot, the greater the chances of it blowing over in the wind. Kim
...See More
Soaking bareroot roses
Q
Comments (4)
One thing I like to do when planting bareroot roses is to cover the canes to protect them from drying out before they sprout leaves. My lazy method is to put an ordinary plastic grocery bag over the canes and tie the bag handles loosely around the base of the rose. Poke 3-4 holes in the top of the bag for ventilation. Spray the canes with water every day if you can. Sometimes bagged roses have the roots packed in excelsior or damp shredded wood. Pack this stuff around the canes before putting on the grocery bag and it will help keep the canes moist. If you live in an area of the south where Spanish moss grows, you can wrap wet moss around the canes.
...See More
HELP! Roses foliage turning yellow then canes to black
Q
Comments (4)
Roses also do not like to be in the middle of so much grass. I would weed out all of the grass (or anything else growing) within 20 inches of the base of the rose (ie a 40 inch in diameter circle). Why are there bricks so close? They do not like that either - I would move the bricks. I do think your roses just need water, and they will be OK. Don't feed or spray them right now. Oh, very important - they will die if their roots are sitting in water - does the area where they are planted drain well? If not, move them to someplace that does. The comment about forsythia above just means it will create too much shade if it gets too big, or grow over the roses - not that there is some sort of mysterious poison coming from the forsythia. Does not look like a problem right now. Where are you, geographically? Jackie
...See More
Is this bareroot rose still alive?
Q
Comments (8)
Nikki, Did you just get those roses? If so, and there was no growth in them at all when you got them, that's a bad omen. It's the end of June! In Indiana the first FLUSH of blooms is well under way if not finishing up because of the excess rain and heat this spring. With no growth at all on your P. Neyron, what's wrong with that rose? Just wait and see what happens next, but don't expect much. Just because there are green canes, that would be a good sign in March/April, but not now, this late in the growing season. Do not fertilize, just keep it moderately watered. You can actually do more harm if you water generously thinking that will kick it into growing. I suspect your P. Neyron's roots came seriously compromise. That's why there's no growth. If there is any hope of them recovering they cannot handle excess moisture at this time. Roots chopped backs and sitting in that plastic bag for who knows how many months, probably dried the roots out, possibly to the point of root death. The green canes have not yet receive the news that the rose is dead. No live roots=whole bush death...only slow at showing the signs. Keep up hope in spite of the conditions. Roses are remarkably resilient. Moses
...See More

Bareroot Roses Yellow Cane Base

Comments (2)

K S 7b Little Rock (formerly of Seattle)

Superteeth (Elgin, TX 8b)
Original Author

Related Discussions

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Bareroot Roses Yellow Cane Base

Comments (2)

K S 7b Little Rock (formerly of Seattle)

Superteeth (Elgin, TX 8b)Original Author

Related Discussions

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Superteeth (Elgin, TX 8b)
Original Author