---
title: "This is a desert rose. I have lots of experience with plants, but…"
description: "This is a desert rose. I have lots of experience with plants, but this one confuses me! It likes to drops leaves. It dropped all leaves except for maybe 4 this…"
url: "https://getplanta.com/community/lKxUkhzRR_aIJD7o1QvtwQ/ZII1KKjDf1fWwVcOyZUDcj"
community: "Pests, diseases and problems"
author: "Summz"
published: "2026-07-07T01:00:23.907743Z"
language: "en"
image: "https://images.getplanta.com/v1/resize/5Krc5XZ9bPv1Ru4TAHRMGUa3DyH44qcwKAJnHdoy-W4/z5JEp0PoQDKiRdR6M_R8hA.webp?size=large"
---

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# This is a desert rose. I have lots of experience with plants, but…

_Posted by Summz on 2026-07-07_

This is a desert rose. I have lots of experience with plants, but this one confuses me! It likes to drops leaves. It dropped all leaves except for maybe 4 this winter. I figured it was too cold, so I moved it farther away from the chilly window. I think it’s maybe a watering issue? I let it go completely dry before watering again. I don’t think it’s a light issue. It’s has always gotten at least 6 hours of direct light -whether from the sun or a grow light. Now it looks good after regrowing leaves from the winter drop. But I recently watered it and it dropped 8 more leaves! The leaves turn completely yellow and dry before dropping. Are these just really fussy plants or am I missing something?

![Attachment 1 of 1](https://images.getplanta.com/v1/resize/5Krc5XZ9bPv1Ru4TAHRMGUa3DyH44qcwKAJnHdoy-W4/z5JEp0PoQDKiRdR6M_R8hA.webp?size=large)

## 2 comments

### plantgeek commented on 2026-07-07

they're deciduous! leaf drop in the winter is completely natural and to be expected. they prefer full sun, they aren't super great indoor plants as you've discovered. they like really gritty, loamy soil like the deserts they're indigenous to, and they do prefer warmer temperatures but temperature drops in the winter are actually necessary to their health, they need a dormant period every year.

#### Summz replied on 2026-07-08

Oh! Thanks, I didn’t know that. Changing the soil now….

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