Check this site. Here's a comment they make about yellowing of the leaves: "B. marginata requires low maintenance. They hold their shape very well. Lignotuberous plants can be pruned hard, whereas non-lignotuberous plants should only be lightly pruned. If foliage begins yellowing, apply chelated iron."

Climate. Most roses flower when specific conditional thresholds are met and continue until the thresholds to halt flowering is achieved. In many areas, those conditions have either not been sufficiently met, or have cycled on then off, tricking the plants into believing it's now spring again. Banksiaes flowering for many months at the coast is well documented. My lutescens flowered for many weeks, then stopped, then started again. We "heated up", into the mid eighties for a few days, then fell back into the seventies and now the foggy, gray, chilly evenings and mornings have returned for a while. These roses are responding to "thinking" they've been through summer, a "winter" and are now back into "spring". It's the same situation which is causing traditional azaleas, camellias and hydrangeas (not the Endless Summer types) to continue throwing spasms of flowers. It's neat and a great deal of fun, but it also tricks other plant types into responding oddly or not at all. There are jacarandas in town which flowered many weeks ago...those surrounded by vast areas of hardscape which collected and concentrated the required heat to cause them to flower. There are many which are just now beginning to flower as they have just now received their required heat. But, there are also many others which have not flowered and a number which literally haven't leafed out yet because they aren't receiving heat at all. Many other deciduous trees here are doing similarly. They appear alive and healthy and they definitely received sufficient winter water, but it hasn't been warm enough, long enough to trigger them to respond as if it's summer. We had a bumper crop of plums (Santa Rosa) and peaches (free stone, unknown variety). They required WEEKS to "ripen" but only the very last of each crop tasted as they should because of lack of heat. Primarily those closest to the fence, where they received greater reflected/radiated heat, were really the sweetest, with most of the others tasting like plum or peach, just not really sweet. Sugar requires heat, something we've generally not really had, in comparison to much of the rest of the country. It's that heat that "tells" the roses it's time to stop flowering and go into summer growth mode. It's also that "heat" which stops rose seeds from germinating. They're continuing to push out of the soil, so they, too, seem to think it's still "spring".

Not Jeri, but if your climate is colder, it will flower for a shorter period. Banksiae itself, will flower over a longer period where the conditions are "spring-like", meaning cooler without the heat spikes summer brings. If where you live is hot, like the San Fernando Valley here in CA, it will begin flowering when the heat increases and continue flowering as long as it receives water and heat. When I lived in the LA area where it was hot, Purezza started flowering when the heat arrived and continued as long as it remained. Now I live in the cool Central Coast where "heat" is relative and in short spurts, Purezza flowered when the temps rose into the mid to high seventies and remained until they dipped back into the sixties. Banksiaes, all of them except Purezza, including Fortuniana and Basye's Amphidiploid 86-3, the tetraploid Banksaie X Laevigata hybrid, began flowering again and are still pushing some flowers. So, the appropriate answer to your question Reb. G, is it depends upon your specific conditions as flowering is a function of climate. If you are too cool, it will flower at the zenith of your heat and stop when the heat stops. If you are hot and remain there, it should start and continue as long as it remains hot. Those Tom Thumb genes manipulate the Banksiae flowering genes tremendously.

Sure hope you all are right! We had a week of bitter cold, one night was 3. Others were 12, 19 and in the 20's. What worries me is that I saw some splitting of canes and didnt see any kind of green on them. They are established bushes and line my driveway, just fabulous in the spring. But if they are alive at the roots.......and will return maybe all is not lost. I also worry about my glorious Crepuscules too. I have been pruning roses, starting with ones in pots. On most, I can see about an inch of green cane.......they are just nubs [and I have waited until I am sure the other cane is dead]. People in the north keep telling me they will come back......it is just hard to look at these pitiful things and believe they can become a bush with blooms again. I will say I am pleasantly surprised at this - the David Austin roses every one seem to have green canes.......esp. Mary Rose. Even a small potted Vanessa Bell. I have been amazed at the cold tolerance of these roses. Emily Bronte is the only one that looks like it will have to be taken back to 1-2". The wonderful Bucks of course are every one thriving. And a new one, while I am at it, I would recommend is a small landscape shrub called Coral Miracle - new last year. The cold didnt touch the canes on this little beauty. I like it in pots.....it came through like a champ, pretty color. Ya'll try one if you can find it for sale. I will just leave the Lady Banksias alone for now......going to really hurt to cut off that beautiful arching growth but if the roses are alive, as you all have given me hope for, they will grow fast and bloom next year. I may be able to find some one gallons with buds and plants those beside the big pruned roses just to see these gorgeous primrose yellow blooms.......thanks ya'll for the help. Judith