Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Dicentra formosa 'Luxuriant' bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Luxuriant fringed bleeding heart (Dicentra formosa 'Luxuriant').

More about dicentra formosa 'luxuriant'

About Dicentra formosa 'Luxuriant'

Dicentra formosa 'Luxuriant' · also called Luxuriant fringed bleeding heart · flowering

A compact, long-blooming fringed bleeding heart with finely divided, fern-like blue-green foliage and dangling cherry-red, heart-shaped flowers. Unlike old-fashioned bleeding heart, 'Luxuriant' keeps its leaves through summer and reblooms from late spring into autumn when kept cool and moist. A tough, mounding perennial for shaded borders and woodland edges.

Plant type: flowering

Watch for — Stops blooming in heat: Dry, hot conditions halt the rebloom and can yellow foliage. Keep soil cool and moist with mulch and shade to extend flowering.

The reasons dicentra formosa 'luxuriant' isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming dicentra formosa 'luxuriant' 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 dicentra formosa 'luxuriant' 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 dicentra formosa 'luxuriant' to flower

Maximise sun. Give dicentra formosa 'luxuriant' 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 dicentra formosa 'luxuriant' and get the feeding right with the dicentra formosa 'luxuriant' 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

Dicentra formosa 'Luxuriant' 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 dicentra formosa 'luxuriant' care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Dicentra formosa 'Luxuriant' blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my dicentra formosa 'luxuriant' flower?

Dicentra formosa 'Luxuriant' 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 dicentra formosa 'luxuriant' bloom?

Give dicentra formosa 'luxuriant' 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 dicentra formosa 'luxuriant' normally bloom?