Some of you lotus peoples.. question about blooming sequence......

[tinkster]

Last year I had 4 new lotus.  One bloomed by the first week of june, two blooms.  Grew very good the rest of the season but no more blooms.  One didnt bloom till late in the season and it had two blooms.  The other two didnt bloom at all. 

Since they were all 1st year lotus, I presume the two that didnt bloom and the one that bloomed late in the season were okay... but why did one bloom so very early, grow great and not bloom again.  Is that  a sign you need more fertilizer?  I remember joyce saying she killed many lotus by overfertilizing. Or do lotus just have limited number of blooms per season??

I ask cause I have one that has taken off like a wild fire and has two buds already and I dont want it to fizzle out but dont want to kill it.   

tinkster

[Ky Kim]

That's how my Lotus bloomed last year.  My big one had 8 on it, a few opened then the end of the week the rest opened.  No other blooms the rest of the season.  This was an established Lotus.

Babydoll Lotus, had 2 blooms and that was all for the whole season it was a new Lotus.

Started 4 new ones this year early in the greenhouse, they are just now getting ariels.

I wonder if its the variety or the size of the plant.  Mature plants get more buds???  They only bloom certain time of the season per variety.  Com'on Lotus people, Tink has a great question.

Kim



Kim

[Danny]

Aloha,

You are very lucky to see lotus bloom the 1st year.  I still trying to see my lotuses in many many years.  Last year, I saw a tiny bud coming up and I put in more fertilizer.  The bud was burned and no lotus bloom at all for 2-3 years.   Danny                 Honolulu, Hawaii

Any suggestions.

[Koi Boi]

As it is with most perennials they have their season for bloom some early and some late.  Sometimes I have extended the season of bloom by dead heading the blooms as soon as a petal drops.  Be aware though, as soon as enough seed pods form, the plant gets the message that the procreation mission is complete and bloom production for that season shuts down.  Every plant is programmed to reproduce its self.  So for more blooms, don't let the seed production mode kick in.  On the other hand Danny,  If a plant refuses to bloom then one must take the upper hand and make the plant think it's going to die.  As it is with many vegetables and flowers, if there is abundant food , they are content to just keep right on growing without concern for reproduction, but withhold the food and the plant will get the message that its days are numbered and  you then see a flush of bloom.  In most cases it is really that simple.


Paul