Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Caucasian Draba bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Caucasian Draba, Mossy Draba, Brunnifolia Whitlow Grass (Draba bruniifolia).

More about caucasian draba

About Caucasian Draba

Draba bruniifolia · also called Caucasian Draba, Mossy Draba · flowering

Draba bruniifolia is a tiny, bun-forming evergreen perennial from the Caucasus and adjacent mountains of Turkey and Iran, growing in rocky scree and crevices at subalpine to alpine elevations. It forms dense mounds of deep green, softly hairy rosettes and bears clusters of bright yellow flowers in early spring, making it one of the most reliably floriferous small drabas in cultivation. Perfect drainage and full sun are essential; it performs best in cool-summer climates, making it well suited to UK troughs and alpine beds. Toxicity data are absent from the ASPCA database; classified as mildly-toxic as a precautionary measure.

Plant type: flowering

The reasons caucasian draba isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming caucasian draba traces back to one of these, roughly in order of how common they are:

Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.
Too much nitrogen feed, driving lush foliage at the expense of flowers (very common with general or lawn feeds).
The plant has not been deadheaded, so it stops flowering once it sets seed.
Irregular watering — drought or waterlogging at the budding stage makes buds abort.
It is still too young or was checked by a transplant and is rebuilding before flowering.

Feeding caucasian draba a high-nitrogen general feed and growing it in too little sun — you get a big leafy plant and almost no flowers.

The fix — how to get caucasian draba to flower

Maximise sun. Give caucasian draba the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers.
Switch the feed. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.
Deadhead regularly. Remove spent flowers often to keep it producing more rather than stopping to set seed.
Water consistently. Keep moisture even through budding and flowering — drought-then-flood swings make buds drop.

Light and feeding do most of the heavy lifting here. Dial in the spot with the light guide for caucasian draba and get the feeding right with the caucasian draba fertilising schedule — the wrong feed (too much nitrogen) is one of the most common silent reasons a healthy plant makes leaves instead of flowers.

Bloom season and what to expect

Caucasian Draba flowers across its growing season (mostly summer) and, kept fed and deadheaded, can bloom for many weeks or right up to frost.

Post-bloom care so it flowers again

Deadhead, keep feeding lightly, and many will rebloom; collect seed from the best plants at the end of the season if you want to grow them again.

For everything else this plant needs day to day, see the full caucasian draba care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Caucasian Draba blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my caucasian draba flower?

Caucasian Draba blooms on the season's growth given enough sun, warmth and the right feed — there is no cold or photoperiod trick, just good growing conditions and a bloom-leaning feed. The most common reason it is not happening: Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.

How do I make caucasian draba bloom?

Give caucasian draba the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.

When does caucasian draba normally bloom?