Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Josephine's Lily bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Josephine's lily, Candelabra flower, Chandelier flower, Royal Brunswick lily (Brunsvigia josephinae).

More about josephine's lily

About Josephine's Lily

Brunsvigia josephinae · also called Josephine's lily, Candelabra flower · flowering

Brunsvigia josephinae is the largest and most majestic species in the genus, a deciduous bulbous perennial from the Western Cape of South Africa whose giant umbels of up to 60 vivid pink flowers can measure 60 cm across — one of the most spectacular autumn-blooming bulb flowers in the world. Like all Brunsvigia, it is hysteranthous: the flower scape emerges from bare ground in late summer, and broad strap-like leaves follow only after flowering ends, persisting through winter before dying away in spring. Established bulbs can take up to 12 years to first bloom, and any disturbance resets the clock — so the single most critical care rule is never to repot or divide without strong reason. All parts are toxic to pets due to Amaryllidaceae alkaloids.

Plant type: flowering

Watch for — Non-flowering despite maturity: Even well-grown bulbs can miss a year if summer drought was interrupted, if the bulb was moved, or if winter temperatures were insufficient to trigger dormancy correctly. Patience and strict adherence to the wet-winter, dry-summer cycle is essential.

The reasons josephine's lily isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming josephine's lily 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 josephine's lily 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 josephine's lily to flower

Maximise sun. Give josephine's lily 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 josephine's lily and get the feeding right with the josephine's lily 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

Josephine's Lily 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 josephine's lily care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Josephine's Lily blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my josephine's lily flower?

Josephine's Lily 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 josephine's lily bloom?

Give josephine's lily 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 josephine's lily normally bloom?