Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Cilician Colchicum bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Cilician colchicum, Cilician meadow saffron, Autumn crocus (Colchicum cilicicum).

More about cilician colchicum

About Cilician Colchicum

Colchicum cilicicum · also called Cilician colchicum, Cilician meadow saffron · flowering

Colchicum cilicicum is a vigorous corm-forming perennial from southern Turkey and the Cilicia region, producing large clusters of rosy-pink to magenta, lightly tessellated flowers in autumn, typically September to October, well ahead of the broad, upright leaves that follow in winter. It is one of the most floriferous and garden-worthy colchicums, suited to open borders, gravel gardens, and naturalising under deciduous trees. Provide full sun and excellent drainage, and keep corms dry during summer dormancy. All parts are highly toxic to cats and dogs due to colchicine.

Plant type: flowering

The reasons cilician colchicum isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming cilician colchicum 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 cilician colchicum 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 cilician colchicum to flower

Maximise sun. Give cilician colchicum 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 cilician colchicum and get the feeding right with the cilician colchicum 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

Cilician Colchicum 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 cilician colchicum care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Cilician Colchicum blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my cilician colchicum flower?

Cilician Colchicum 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 cilician colchicum bloom?

Give cilician colchicum 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 cilician colchicum normally bloom?