No one wants a sad-looking Rose plant. It’s as sorry a sight as it gets. If you own Rose plants, you may one day have to encounter such a sight.
Taking good care of Rose plants can prevent you from encountering such a problem. Still, sometimes things go south, and a Rose grower must have all the knowledge up their sleeve to save a dying Rose bush.
How to Revive Drooping Roses?
To revive a drooping Rose, you must diagnose the problem first. Check the soil. If it seems dry, your plant needs to be watered more regularly. If it’s wet and the plant is still droopy, it’s root rot. Study the light levels. Roses droop in low light. Check the foliage for any pests or diseases.
Transplant Shock
When you repot or transplant your Rose plant from one place to the other, the roots get a little disturbed. This can reduce the water uptake for the plant.
When the soil around the roots falls off and they are exposed during the transplant, they get dehydrated and may die.
After the transplant, the water uptake falls while the transpiration rate is the same. This will cause the Roses to wilt, but only temporarily.
Don’t worry if a recently transplanted Rose is drooping. It’s only transplant shock. The best you can do is leave the plant be, and it will revive on its own when the roots get established.
Try to keep the rootball undisturbed and transplant it in the spring to avoid severe shock.
Underwatered Roses
If you checked the soil and it seems bone dry, your plant probably suffers from underwatering. But, if the Rose plants are still green, they can easily be revived.
Underwatering is almost the most straightforward drooping Rose problem to solve. All you have to do is start watering regularly, and your Rose will be rejuvenated.
Rose plants like consistently moist soil, so start giving them a hearty drink of water each time the top 2-3 inches of soil get dry.
Roses will droop when not watered adequately, but there are a few factors that can aggravate the problem, such as a pot that is too small, very light soil, and excessive heat.
Place the plant in a shaded place if it’s too hot. Repot it to a bigger pot that can retain soil moisture for a longer time.
Also, using the right type of soil mix is essential. Use soil with a high proportion of organic matter and peat moss for better water retention.
Overwatered Roses
An overwatered Rose is a much severer problem than an underwatered one. Being overwatered means a plant’s roots are rotting, and you can’t stop it just like that.
The Rose may develop yellow leaves, leaf drop with all the intact leaves drooping.
Reviving a Rose suffering from root rot is not easy, and sometimes it may be a lost cause already.
Move the plant out of direct sunlight and place it in the shade. Take the rootball out of the pot and place it somewhere dry so the excess moisture can evaporate quickly.
If you can’t take the rootball out, poke through the drainage hole to unclog it and aerate the soil by plowing it gently with a stick.
You can also use root rot fungicide to stop the root rot process in the soil.
Do not water the soil and let it dry. You can also cover the plant with a plastic bag if it’s not very big to prevent the foliage from drying.
If the previous pot did not have drainage holes, take a new one with adequate drainage and use well-draining soil to repot the plant.
Line the bottom of the pot with a layer of pebbles or small rocks to ensure quick drainage.
Low Light Issues
Drooping and yellow leaves on Roses may also indicate inadequate lighting.
Roses prefer direct sunlight for 6-8 hours a day and do not do well in the shade. If you’ve confirmed that the problem is not because of improper watering, low light might be it.
Place the plant somewhere sunny where it can get at least 4 hours of direct sunlight a day, although 6 hours are preferred.
If you are growing Roses indoors and you’re not getting much sun indoors, using a grow light to make up for Rose light requirements is your best shot at reviving the drooping Rose plant.
Diseases
Your Rose plant may be drooping because of a Botrytis Blight infection. Check the foliage for grayish mold lesions near the flowers or decaying, brown-colored buds.
In case of a severe infection, the leaves may have gray mold patches.
Remove the infected foliage immediately and treat the plant with a fungicidal treatment. Safely remove the infected stems and dispose of them by sealing them in a plastic bag.
Botrytis Blight usually attacks in warm and humid conditions, so keep your plant in a well-ventilated area and water it only at the base.
Overfertilization
Roses are heavy feeders and need frequent fertilization. However, mistakes are common in the feeding department, and the plants often get overfertilized.
Excessive fertilizer in the soil draws out the moisture from the roots. It disturbs the water balance between the soil and the roots and makes the soil suck water out of the roots.
This is called root tip burn. The plant is unable to absorb enough soil moisture and eventually starts drooping.
To revive an overfertilized Rose, place the plant in the sink and water it as much as you can. Make sure the water flows out of the drainage hole.
Flushing the rootball in this manner will remove the excess fertilizer nutrients and restore the soil’s original balance.
The plant may then gradually start absorbing the water it needs and revive itself.
Avoid overfertilization by always using mild doses of fertilizer and watering your plant well before feeding sessions.
Moreover, do not fertilize the Rose immediately after bringing it home from the nursery. It can be that the plant was recently fed, and you feeding it again will lead to overfertilization.
Daniel has been a plant enthusiast for over 20 years. He owns hundreds of houseplants and prepares for the chili growing seasons yearly with great anticipation. His favorite plants are plant species in the Araceae family, such as Monstera, Philodendron, and Anthurium. He also loves gardening and is growing hot peppers, tomatoes, and many more vegetables.