I got some decently lit pics today, here's a few more from the collection! A better view of the big one: A bonsai-esque dwarf variety of some kind: This one is a broadleaf cultivar with blotchy colours.. I had to cut it back as its old leaves were not acclimating well and spider mites were starting to have at it. So, I went for a drastic haircut, which seems to have worked out okay, as it's been growing back slowly the last couple months! Might be same cultivar as the big one, not sure though as the "rippled" effect seems to appear in some leaves. I've cut it back each year for two years, hoping to develop a nice looking bushy plant some day out of it. Hard to get a good pic of this one on an iPhone camera but it's certainly one of the stranger ones I have. I think the cultivar was labelled as "devil's paintbrush" or somesuch. Didn't handle going from the garden centre to the home very well as first, but after a couple haircuts its growing well enough. Haven't fully recovered the colour yet though, wondering if it needs more or less sun. Bit of a weird one I haven't seen at any garden centres since getting it.. long leaves like the Banana cultivar but fades to red/pink instead: The second croton I ever bought. When I got it it was very leggy and in a tiny 2" container, I've given it regular haircuts which have done well for it. (The third one I ever bought has since died, as has any of that cultivar I've bought since.. the very-long-leaved brght-yellow ones just don't last long with me for some reason!) This one seems to be a relatively close cultivar to the previous, but the leaves seem different to me, enough to nearly convince me it's a different cultivar.. it certainly grows slower and with larger leaves: Bought this one last week. I noticed today as an added bonus it has started to product a flower stem! I guess it likes me. As usual, came with spider mites, I have it in quarantine away from my sunroom at the moment: Here is a link that might be useful: All these photos on a Google Plus Album

gladly gal... i appreciate the diplomacy ... i see two things at work here ... first .. PERHAPS .. a newb who might be afraid to prune shrubs.. for fear of killing them ... i wanted to wash away that thought .. all plants can be pruned ... we have all seen topiary and bonsai ... and the hand shearing.. i just wanted to reinforce.. that there are other ways of reducing the size of a plant.. rather than just thru shearing ... which can end up very ugly ... [and if OP is not a newb.. i am sure there are other newbs who read all this stuff.. so i offer the knowledge to them] ... second.. i am glad i can blame a prior owner ... these plants have too great a potential ... to be planted as close to the house as they were ... most often this happens.. when they are planted for the size at point of sale ... with no regard.. that they will double to triple in size.. over the years ... and at that point ... they HAVE TO BE PRUNED ... see the vicious cycle i was trying to bring to everyones attention??? not everyone like yellow conifers ... and not everyone like the job of pruning ... if either thought crosses your mind.. its time for one or both to go ... get rid of the prior owners mistakes.. and plant your own .. lol ... then you have no one to blame ... i never feel guilty killing plants... as they are usually replaced by more than were removed ... any better gal??? ken ps: i have what came as pladycladus breckworths .. or some such.. few latin name changes over the year ... looks very similar to the yellow plant ... from about a foot big.. in 16 years... it is probably over this persons window ... it is sublime out on the acreage ... it would not be.. if planted close to the house.. and i had been cutting on it for the last 5 years ... Thuja orientalis 'Aurea Nana' (Platycladus).. at this link ... note that ever dwarf conifers.. can get very large ... the dwarf word.. is what make peeps think they can plant them 2 feet from the foundation .. note the second pic .... http://www.boethingtreeland.com/thuja-orientalis-aurea-nana-platycladus.html

I'm with lati above, it's perhaps beyond redemption, but if you want a project..............remove from the soil and allow to dry out. While it's unpotted, and do it soon, core out all of the rotten tissue in the crown of the plant, making sure you get all of the mush out and leaving only solid tissue, and pack the wound with flowers of sulfur (sulfur powder). Repot after cleaning up the roots (the healthy ones will be yellowish) and don't water for a week or so. When you do water, do so very lightly - keep at that for several months, and don't water the crown, only the soil. This method of saving a plant has worked a number of times, and let's hope it will get to you in time to save your plant.

Make sure its draining properly , and if its inside, move it outdoors, but keep it out of full sun/provide shade until it looks happy. And don't fertilize/feed it until then either. The way you described "being given a pot of roses" makes me wonder if you may have been gifted with a grocery store mini rose- these roses while being very pretty aren't usually sold with long term survival in mind, so you have to help them along. They bloom , look nice, then get thrown out. However, it is possible to save them, and they can make great garden plants with a bit of care. When you repotted them, were there several separate plants? that you divided when repotting? mini roses are often sold as 3 or 4 different barely rooted cuttings, so can go into shock when you transplant them (not that they would survive long if kept in the original too small container). If that is the case, it might not be a good idea to move them again so soon, even tho they will need a bigger pot eventually. There's another forum here about mini roses, although it doesn't get as many people commenting regularly there are plenty of posts covering grocery mini rescuing. I've tried it myself with varying degrees of success, and if I can manage it, anything is possible!