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Clivia miniata flower problem...
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Posted by ray_ratliff z10 South Florida (My Page) on Tue, Mar 25, 08 at 22:48
| I have a 9 year old Clivia Miniata that has flowered regularly for the last 6 years or so. This year it is flowering, but instead of sending up the flower spike & then opening the buds, it seems to have foregone the whole event of making a tall spike & has just decided to start opening the buds only about an inch or so above the bottom of the newest leaf! Any ideas about what I did (or didn't do) to cause this? Is it possible that it might still produce a stem?
-Ray-
P.S. if you need a photo, I can upload one later. |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Clivia miniata flower problem...
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| Too much warmth over the winter often results in short scapes. They need about a month of low temperatures - in the low 50's is what the experts say, although mine probably hovers around 60 at night all winter and does fine, scape-length-wise. Once they have that month, daytime temps from 60 to 75 seem to give the best flowering results. Did you change it's environment or was your local winter particularly warm this year? - Steve |
RE: Clivia miniata flower problem...
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| I would say it was no more warm than any other Florida Winder. I am willing to bet that it did this because of a couple very cold nights followed by very warm days. Oh well, there is always next year. Thanks for your responce! |
RE: Clivia miniata flower problem...
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| Mine did that one year, the year that I moved. I fed it after that, and it was fine the next year. Is yours in a pot -- and did you relocate the pot? |
RE: Clivia miniata flower problem...
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| Hi Kelpmermaid, thanks for the reply. Yes, mine is in a pot. I moved into a new condo 2 years ago. I bloomed fine last year after the move (I moved in Jan. It bloomed in early April). This year if the first year (if my memory serves correctly) that it has bloomed this early. Its usually a week or two into April when it comes out. I have given it a weak dose of my orchid fertilizer & am hoping that it might stimulate a little upward growth. But I am not counting on it. Oh well, it is still beautiful smells great =0) -Ray- |
RE: Clivia miniata flower problem...
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I had six of mine do that last spring. It wasn't so much the lack of coolness that did it, but it was too much light too early. This winter I stuck them in the same spot, my cellar, where the temps hover a round 60 all winter, but I cut my lights down to only 6 hours a day. Wow, this winter I got tall spikes!!
Once they get alot of light, the spike stops growing, and whulla, the buds open. Gorgous flowers this year on tall spikes!!
One I brought up, and introduced to light a little to early, earlier than the others, and the spike on this one is way shorter. Less light, longer spike!! Hope this helps.;-) Now that you have put your clivia in more light, the stock will not grow longer, but your flowers will open sooner |
RE: Clivia miniata flower problem...
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| Hi, Warmth also speeds everything up. When we are still in the 40's, the spikes and flowers take forever to grow and open. They also last for weeks. When we hit 80 on a random day, everything suddenly opens and is gone in a few days to a week. Craig
Sacramento, CA |
RE: Clivia miniata flower problem...
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| I have owned a Clivia for 2 years and I left it in the container that it grew in at the garden center. I live in Florida and have it on my lanai in shade. It has not bloomed in the 2 years I have owned it. I had one in Massachusetts that I ignored and it bloomed every year indoors. But unfortunately it did not survive the move to Florida. What am I doing wrong with this one? Maybe I am not watering it enough ?? |
RE: Clivia miniata flower problem...
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| Not really sure, I mostly grow orchids. The clivia is just something I bought on a whim a long time ago. I grow mine inside the house in my East facing kitchen window. I give it fertilizer every 3 weeks in the growing season (the same water soluble 15-15-15 fertilizer that i give to my orchids). In the winter I put some of those slow release fertilizer balls on it so it get smaller doses when I water it. I think that these guys need a couple years to mature to blooming size, kind of like Amaryllis. Again, I do not spend a lot of time researching Clivias & how they grow, so I could be completely off base on that one. I am sure that light levels will also certainly help it produce flowers. Shoot an e-mail to one of the people on this forum, they will know more than I do =0) -Ray- |
RE: Clivia miniata flower problem...
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| Hi, People in Florida seem to have a lot mroe trouble flowering Clivias. The general consensus is they don't receive enough of a chill. One of the major Americna growers stated they need 300 hours of chill to bloom. In Southern CA, I don't know if they get that much, but you will see them all over in bloom. I also wonder about the day length sycle. If the time between the shortest day and longest day is minimal, another signal migh be missing as well. Basically, keep them in a warm cool dark dry area for 1-2 months without water or fertilizer and see what happens. If they are in the landscape, that might be difficult. Some Clivias only bloom every 2-3 years as well. I hope this helps. Craig |
RE: Clivia miniata flower problem...
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| I had the same problem with my Clivia, and the flowers seemed to be a little disfigured (fused petals, stuck-together stamens) because they opened too low. Maybe keeping them colder will fix the problem. |
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