Can You Help Please? We Brought Two Hibiscus Trees And…
Yvonne Asked
Can you help please? We brought two hibiscus trees and they bloomed beautifully for a two-week period. Then suddenly they no longer gave flowers for about a month now. They have lenty of green foliage and the plants look healthy, yet no new buds.
The Gardener’s Answer
Hello, Yvonne: Tropical hibiscus are a lovely addition to the summer garden. They typically are prolific bloomers provided they receive enough sunlight as well as nutrients. For the best blooms, hibiscus should be given a full day of direct sunlight. This means they should be growing in a space where they will be exposed to a minimum of six hours of sun. These tropicals are considered heavy feeders, so if you have not fertilized lately this is likely the issue. It sounds like your plants are otherwise happy, but they just may need to be encouraged to bloom again. Once they use up all the nutrients/energy they have stored up to produce flowers, they will need to be replenished. Visit your favorite garden center and purchase either a liquid or granular fertilizer. A well-balanced fertilizer such as 10-10-10 should be fine. Hibiscus will also benefit from additional iron. Too much phosphorus (middle number) can discourage blooms on tropical hibiscus. Be certain to follow fertilizer instructions as directed by the product since over feeding can also cause the hibiscus not to bloom. Hopefully this is the problem and your plants will soon be full of flowers again.
