Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Ipomoea batatas 'Blackie' bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Blackie sweet potato vine, ornamental sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas 'Blackie').

More about ipomoea batatas 'blackie'

About Ipomoea batatas 'Blackie'

Ipomoea batatas 'Blackie' · also called Blackie sweet potato vine, ornamental sweet potato · flowering

'Blackie' is an ornamental sweet potato vine grown for its deep purple-black, maple-like lobed foliage rather than flowers. A vigorous, trailing tender perennial usually treated as an annual, it spills dramatically from containers and hanging baskets and races along the ground as bedding. Rarely blooms in cultivation; its value is the bold, near-black cascading leaves that contrast with brighter plants.

Plant type: flowering

The reasons ipomoea batatas 'blackie' isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming ipomoea batatas 'blackie' 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 ipomoea batatas 'blackie' 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 ipomoea batatas 'blackie' to flower

Maximise sun. Give ipomoea batatas 'blackie' 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 ipomoea batatas 'blackie' and get the feeding right with the ipomoea batatas 'blackie' 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

Ipomoea batatas 'Blackie' 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 ipomoea batatas 'blackie' care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Ipomoea batatas 'Blackie' blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my ipomoea batatas 'blackie' flower?

Ipomoea batatas 'Blackie' 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 ipomoea batatas 'blackie' bloom?

Give ipomoea batatas 'blackie' 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 ipomoea batatas 'blackie' normally bloom?