Rose leave going pale green

Bluebelltime

Hi all

Why are my rose leaves going pale green.  Other than the colour it seems to be ok. Any advice?
I've uploaded a pic 

amancalledgeorge

That looks like just new growth. It should become darker as it matures. Give it a week before getting alarmed. 

Bluebelltime

Are you sure. Even the buds are pale green (see attached pic) They weren't that colour in june. 

amancalledgeorge

Hmmm that's quite a big bud to be that colour...wonder if it's any damage from weedkiller spray. Still I'd wait to see if it improves before acting. The rest of the plant seems healthy so it doesn't add up. Let's see what other forum members have to say. 

Joy*

I suspect iron deficiency.  Have they been fed at all?

Borderline

How often are you watering the rose? The pot looks quite crowded. Make sure you watering them well. In some rare instances, rose tips can turn this colour due to the lack of water in the soil.

Bluebelltime

I've watered 2/3 times and week and intend to water every day this week because of the rising temperatures. I haven't fed it for a month because I mulched it thinking that's enough . Will try feeding it a liquid feed and see what happens. thanks for the suggestions 

Nollie

If it had the choice, your rose (indeed most shrubs or small trees) would want to be planted in the ground in good, moisture retentive but not boggy soil with lots of room for its roots to spread down and around and be able to extract the nutrients it needs from the soil itself. For hungry and thirsty plants like roses, even in the ground, they need to be watered deeply (whole watering can) two or three times a week, fed a good quality, balanced rose feed two or three times a year and mulched annually with well-rotted manure or compost.

Whilst you can’t entirely replicate these conditions in a pot, you can come close with extra care, feeding and watering. What is it planted in? Did you mix in some garden soil or a soil based medium? If it’s in purely standard, multi-purpose compost, that will be exhausted and devoid of nutrients quickly so you need to compensate for that. I think the new growth is showing signs of nutrient deficiency and is possibly thirsty too, depending on the quantity of water you give it each time. 

It’s also tempting to feed to encourage flowering (high potash, like tomato feed) but if you do that too much it can lock out the plant’s access to other minerals, e.g. a lack of magnesium or iron can cause leaves to be pale and wan.

If you have extremely hard tap water, a couple of teabags disolved in the watering can will help (top tip from our forum’s rose expert).

Bluebelltime

I planted it in my own home compost. You're right, the nutrients are probably depleted. will try feeding it. Thanks for the advice