What to Do If Duranta Does Not Bloom
Comprehensive analysis of why Duranta does not bloom and methods to make Duranta bloom every year in terms of green plant maintenance experience. The following is a detailed answer from the editor:
Duranta, like most succulents, belongs to the Crassulaceae family, with fleshy stems and leaves, making it highly drought-resistant. As long as you can control the watering and not overwater it, Duranta can live for a long time and grow into a perennial. However, many gardening enthusiasts often ask in private messages, "Why doesn't my Duranta bloom despite its lush growth?" How can Duranta be maintained to bloom year after year? The following are some personal insights that may help gardening friends.
How to Make Duranta Bloom?
Actually, it is very simple to make Duranta bloom. Duranta is not only easy to care for, but its blooming period is also particularly long. During its natural blooming period and bud formation period (October and November every year), it will gradually form flower buds. To make Duranta bloom, we first need to understand when its blooming period is and then encourage blooming during its bud formation period; understanding the conditions required for blooming and providing them will promote blooming. The following aspects can be focused on:
① Understand its natural blooming period and act accordingly.
Ordinarily, in flower markets, Duranta with flowers or flower buds can be seen for sale at any time of the year. This is because Duranta can have controlled lighting, temperature, and humidity conditions in greenhouses, allowing it to bloom all year round. However, in reality, Duranta is not a flower that blooms all year round. It has its natural blooming period. Without special measures in a normal home, it will only bloom during its natural blooming period.
The natural blooming period of Duranta is in the winter and spring seasons, specifically from November of the current year to April of the following year, with bud formation starting after the "Autumn Equinox." So if you find that Duranta is not forming flower buds throughout the year, the first thing to consider is whether its blooming period has arrived. Forcing it to bloom before its time is a bit unreasonable, isn't it?
② Appropriate lighting is necessary for flower bud differentiation.
The main factor affecting the differentiation of flower buds in Duranta is the change in lighting. As mentioned above, Duranta starts forming flower buds from the "Autumn Equinox." In the 24 solar terms, "Spring Equinox" and "Autumn Equinox" are two particularly important ones. On these two days, the equator is aligned with the sun, resulting in equal day and night lengths of 12 hours everywhere. After the Spring Equinox, the day becomes longer than the night; conversely, the day becomes shorter than the night after the Autumn Equinox.
Duranta is a short-day blooming plant. After the Autumn Equinox, the day becomes shorter than the night, and this slight change in lighting is the most important factor stimulating the differentiation of flower buds in Duranta. This influence for about 20 days or a month will result in flower buds appearing at the top of Duranta's branches.
Regarding lighting, there is another point to note. Although Duranta is short-day, it does not mean that the required lighting is weak, but rather that the duration of daily sunlight is shorter. Therefore, these two points combined mean that for Duranta to form flower buds, it needs at least half a month to a month of adequate short-day lighting.
③ Maintain a suitable room temperature to prevent僵 seedlings.
The environment for maintaining Duranta should have a stable room temperature, i.e., 18 to 25 degrees Celsius. If the temperature is too low (below 10 degrees Celsius), the seedlings of Duranta will be affected by low temperature, similar to humans being frozen and unwilling to grow, resulting in flower buds that do not grow properly and affecting blooming.
④ Apply some flowering fertilizer to add oil to the blooming process.
One important reason why Duranta may not bloom is a lack of nutrition, especially a deficiency of phosphorus. Therefore, when maintaining Duranta, it is necessary to apply sufficient base fertilizer to promote the growth of branches and leaves, allowing the plant to store enough nutrients, which is beneficial for blooming. During the bud formation period, it is also necessary to supplement fertilizers rich in phosphorus and potassium elements to promote blooming.
There are various types of fertilizers available, making it confusing for many people. However, flowering fertilizers are simple; using monopotassium phosphate is enough. This is a white crystal quick-acting fertilizer, and its application method is to dilute it with water before fertilizing. For Duranta, it is recommended to dilute it 1000 times with water, which can be used to spray on leaves or water the roots, or both methods can achieve good results, with two applications per month.
⑤ Skillfully control watering to encourage flower bud formation.
Many times, Duranta grows lush branches but does not bloom, possibly because the plant is too comfortable with excessive care, resulting in a lack of incentive to bloom. In such cases, we can skillfully use water control to encourage flower bud formation.
How to skillfully control watering? Many people are afraid of their plants lacking water, so they water frequently. However, Duranta is a highly drought-resistant plant, and you don't need to worry about drying it out. When controlling watering, you can slightly extend the watering interval based on normal watering and water only when the leaves start to soften slightly. After repeating this process several times, Duranta will clearly show flower bud formation.
What to Do If Duranta Does Not Bloom
What to Do If Duranta Only Forms Flower Buds but Does Not Bloom?
Duranta only forming flower buds but not blooming is also a very frustrating problem. Since Duranta has a long blooming period and a long period of bud formation, usually from the initial appearance of flower buds to the completion of bud formation can take two months or even longer. If there are problems during this period, it is likely to cause the flower buds to wither or remain dormant.
Therefore, when Duranta is forming flower buds, it is necessary to pay attention to nutritional supplementation, maintain a suitable temperature, ensure sufficient lighting, and prevent root rot. When Duranta's roots rot, it is usually not noticeable from the outside within a short period, and sometimes it is not discovered until the rot has spread to the stem. So, let's talk about this point in more detail, as the other three points have been explained sufficiently above.
To prevent Duranta root rot, the main method is to reduce watering and not water when the potting soil is not dry; also, the concentration of fertilizer should not be too high; the maintenance environment should be ventilated to prevent root rot and other pests and diseases (such as red spider mites and powdery mildew).
How to Keep Duranta Blooming Year After Year?
① Train it into an old plant to bloom year after year.
If you want Duranta to bloom every year, you must train it into an old plant. Training Duranta into an old plant requires overcoming two challenges: the hot summer and the cold winter. Duranta is both afraid of heat and cold; high temperatures in the summer will cause dormancy (overwatering during dormancy can cause stem rot), and extreme cold in the winter can damage the plant.
The most suitable growth environment for Duranta is between 15 to 25 degrees Celsius. If such a suitable temperature can be provided all year round, training it into an old plant and making it bloom every year will definitely not be a problem. If the temperature exceeds 30 degrees Celsius in the summer, Duranta should be shaded, cooled, and watered appropriately; if the temperature drops to five degrees Celsius in the winter, it should be placed in a warm, sunny location.
② Do not prune too late, or there will be no flowering branches.
At the end of spring every year, Duranta's flowers basically fade, and it is time to prune. This involves pruning the残花 and reshaping the plant's structure. After pruning, the branches will grow for several months, possibly sprouting lateral branches, which will need time to grow and form flower buds.
Therefore, the pruning time should not be too late, especially in poor growing environments where Duranta grows slowly. If pruning is delayed, it will not form flowering branches, and it will definitely not bloom that year. It is recommended to complete the pruning in the first half of the year, and not later than August or September.
③ Do not force blooming after flowering, let it rest and recover, then bloom again.
Many gardening enthusiasts are very eager to see flowers and want to make Duranta rebloom immediately after the first bloom, using all sorts of methods to encourage it to form new flower buds. However, this is actually harmful to the plant.
Most plants have their growth patterns. Generally, after blooming once, they need to rest, i.e., regrow branches and leaves and store nutrients, before blooming again. Duranta is the same; it usually blooms once a year. If it is forced to bloom more than once, it is overexerting its energy and vitality, which can lead to the plant's demise after the second bloom.
So after the spring bloom, do not think about making it rebloom. Quickly prune the残花, change the pot and soil, and then apply a multi-element compound fertilizer to let it rest and grow properly, storing enough nutrients for sustainable development.
④ Prune branches after flowering to promote the formation of flowering branches and abundant blooming.
Pruning after flowering is very necessary. It not only includes pruning残花 but also involves pruning dense, weak, and dry branches. All these should be pruned reasonably, and if the plant's shape is not very attractive, this can be an opportunity to give it a more satisfactory shape.
After pruning the top of Duranta, the plant's apical dominance is broken, causing it to grow lateral branches from the top two or four leaves. These lateral branches, after growing for half a year, will become the flowering branches for the next bloom. The more new flowering branches formed, the more flower buds will grow, and the bloom will be more abundant.
⑤ Change the pot and prune the roots after flowering to promote new root growth and add oil to the blooming process.
Generally, Duranta needs to be repotted every year to replenish the nutrients that have been depleted from the soil. Taking this opportunity to prune and treat the roots can promote new root growth. If Duranta has formed an old plant, the old roots should be pruned by 1/3 to 1/2 to promote the growth of new roots, which have the strongest ability to absorb nutrients and water.
In conclusion, to make Duranta bloom every year, you first need to help it successfully survive each summer and winter, as it is afraid of both heat and cold. Additionally, after flowering each year, you need to repot, change the soil, prune the roots and branches. Also, be careful not to overwater and do not force it to rebloom immediately after flowering. These are the main points to pay attention to.
Above is the experience and knowledge on what to do if Duranta does not bloom and how to make Duranta bloom every year. I hope this article can bring you some help!