Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Fortune's Plum Yew bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Fortune's Plum Yew, Chinese Plum Yew (Cephalotaxus fortunei).

More about fortune's plum yew

About Fortune's Plum Yew

Cephalotaxus fortunei · also called Fortune's Plum Yew, Chinese Plum Yew · flowering

Fortune's Plum Yew is an elegant, shade-tolerant conifer from central and southern China, producing long, glossy, two-ranked needles and plum-like olive-green fruits. One of the finest conifers for deep shade, it forms a graceful spreading shrub or small tree and tolerates dry shade when established. It contains harringtonine alkaloids and should be kept away from pets and children.

Plant type: flowering

The reasons fortune's plum yew isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming fortune's plum yew 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 fortune's plum yew 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 fortune's plum yew to flower

Maximise sun. Give fortune's plum yew 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 fortune's plum yew and get the feeding right with the fortune's plum yew 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

Fortune's Plum Yew 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 fortune's plum yew care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Fortune's Plum Yew blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my fortune's plum yew flower?

Fortune's Plum Yew 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 fortune's plum yew bloom?

Give fortune's plum yew 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 fortune's plum yew normally bloom?