HelpfulGardener.com

Hi! I've recently purchased a yellow rose bush, that smells like citrus and rose. It was a beautiful, healthy plant or so I thought.
I brought it home and planted it and all seemed to be going well, when all of a sudden the new growth and new little buds started dropping.
We have had a lot of rain lately. Today was our first day of sun in about a week but the soil doesn't seem to be drench or over wet. I've never had this happen before and I'm not quite sure what could be causing this issue. I'm affraid that it might not make it. It looks like it might need more water but I'm affraid of over watering too! Any advise? Please Help!!

You are correct to be concerned about too much water. Too much can result in fungal root rot problems. If your soil contains clay, that can make the situation worse because clay soil creates what is sometimes called the "bathtub" effect. This is caused when you dig a whole in clay soil, replace the soil with better soil and then water (that is, rain water, sprinkler water, etc) from all clay sides ends up leeching into the spot where you added the "new" soil. Use the finger mnethod to keep an eye on the soil moisture. Insert a finger into the soil to a depth of 4". If it feels wet for long periods of time, you will need to either transplant it to a better spot, grow it in raised beds or tweak the hole. Some people make the hole wider in all directions and add expanding shale rocks (or similar variations thereof). Compost can absorb a lot of water so it helps to add compost into the soil mix. Mulch can also absorb come of the water so maintain 3-4" of mulch at all times.

Over fertilizing can burn the roots as well and cause droop.