Does anyone else have problems getting the bottom part of...
2ft to light, indirect
4” pot with drainage
Last watered 2 days ago
6
Best Answer
To get blooms on the bottom half, you have to force the plant to grow completely new, bushy branches down low. Here is how you can achieve that:
1. Wait Out the Current Bloom, Then Prune (The "Chop")
Enjoy the gorgeous orange flowers at the top right now! Once those blooms begin to fade and drop off, it's time to break that apical dominance.
Take clean shears and cut the main vertical stem back by about a third or even a half, right above a lower leaf node.
Removing the dominant top signals the plant to wake up the dormant "sleeping" buds along the lower half of the stem, forcing it to branch out laterally and become a much bushier, lower-profile plant.
2. Maximize Light to the Lower Stem
The large lower leaves can easily shade out the main stem, preventing new shoots from waking up.
Make sure the plant is getting plenty of bright, indirect light.
If the lower half of the stem is in the dark, those new lower branches won't form. Gently rotate the pot every few days so all sides of the lower stem receive even light.
3. Fuel New Buds with Phosphorus
Once you see tiny new green shoots pushing out from the lower nodes after your prune, change up your feeding routine to encourage flowers instead of just leaves.
Use a high-phosphorus organic fertilizer (often called a "Bloom Booster") to stimulate heavy flower bud production on that fresh, lower growth.
1. Wait Out the Current Bloom, Then Prune (The "Chop")
Enjoy the gorgeous orange flowers at the top right now! Once those blooms begin to fade and drop off, it's time to break that apical dominance.
Take clean shears and cut the main vertical stem back by about a third or even a half, right above a lower leaf node.
Removing the dominant top signals the plant to wake up the dormant "sleeping" buds along the lower half of the stem, forcing it to branch out laterally and become a much bushier, lower-profile plant.
2. Maximize Light to the Lower Stem
The large lower leaves can easily shade out the main stem, preventing new shoots from waking up.
Make sure the plant is getting plenty of bright, indirect light.
If the lower half of the stem is in the dark, those new lower branches won't form. Gently rotate the pot every few days so all sides of the lower stem receive even light.
3. Fuel New Buds with Phosphorus
Once you see tiny new green shoots pushing out from the lower nodes after your prune, change up your feeding routine to encourage flowers instead of just leaves.
Use a high-phosphorus organic fertilizer (often called a "Bloom Booster") to stimulate heavy flower bud production on that fresh, lower growth.
Hi @Gillianroset pinching it back will encourage branching and you’ll get blooms because they come from new growth. So keep pinching away to make her fuller and with new growth points. If your pinches or cuttings are long enough you can prop them and put them back in with Ms. Brooke Shields 😊 🥰. Thanks for the tag @ILoveMyPlants 🫶🏼 also tagging @DreamMachine she’s got a lot of success with begonias 👍
@MariansOasis LOL I thought of @DreamMachine too, but I didn’t want her to think I’m a bother been tagging her a lot lately.
@ILoveMyPlants aww you never have to worry about that! Tag away 🥰 I’m always down to talk about plants, no matter what! 😉
@Gillianroset thanks so much for the best answer ✅ 😊
