I moved into the new place back in August and inherited a rose bush that was in need of attention. It was being infested by insects, and in dire need of pruning. It had one flower, a pale pink one with five petals. Over the next four weeks it had only one bloom at a time, and each flower that bloomed came in with darker petals; something that I attributed to the plant’s improving health. Now it’s quite different, with about 6 flowers and twice as many buds, at the ends of as much as a foot of new growth at the tips of branches I’d pruned.
The blooms that are on new growth since I’ve moved in are the vibrant pink, but have two full sets of five petals, with a third innermost set coming in that’s usually not got the full set of five, and of smaller size and typically very poor shape. In other words, blooms have between 11 and 14 petals, 10 of which are very nice looking.
I know this isn’t an issue where root stock is different from the flowering portion, as I can easily follow the flowers’ branches back to the ground and see that they’re coming from the same stock as when I moved in. Did this plant’s poor health change both the color and the shape of it’s flowers? And am I still witnessing a progression to a third set of five petals?