Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Dawn Redwood 'Gold Rush' bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Gold Rush dawn redwood, golden dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides 'Gold Rush').

More about dawn redwood 'gold rush'

About Dawn Redwood 'Gold Rush'

Metasequoia glyptostroboides 'Gold Rush' · also called Gold Rush dawn redwood, golden dawn redwood · flowering

A golden-leaved form of the deciduous dawn redwood, a living-fossil conifer. Feathery sprays of soft needles emerge bright chartreuse-yellow, hold their gold through summer in sun, then turn coppery-orange before dropping. Fast-growing and upright-conical, it makes a luminous specimen tree. ('Gold Rush' and 'Ogon' are the same clone under different names.)

Plant type: flowering

The reasons dawn redwood 'gold rush' isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming dawn redwood 'gold rush' 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 dawn redwood 'gold rush' 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 dawn redwood 'gold rush' to flower

Maximise sun. Give dawn redwood 'gold rush' 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 dawn redwood 'gold rush' and get the feeding right with the dawn redwood 'gold rush' 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

Dawn Redwood 'Gold Rush' 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 dawn redwood 'gold rush' care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Dawn Redwood 'Gold Rush' blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my dawn redwood 'gold rush' flower?

Dawn Redwood 'Gold Rush' 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 dawn redwood 'gold rush' bloom?

Give dawn redwood 'gold rush' 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 dawn redwood 'gold rush' normally bloom?