Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Lady of the Night bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Lady of the Night Orchid (Brassavola nodosa).

More about lady of the night

About Lady of the Night

Brassavola nodosa · also called Lady of the Night Orchid · flowering

Brassavola nodosa is a tough Central American epiphyte famous for its powerful citrus-floral fragrance released after dark. It bears slender, pencil-like leaves and spidery greenish-white flowers with a broad white lip. Forgiving of bright light and drought, it is one of the easiest fragrant orchids for a sunny windowsill.

Plant type: flowering

Watch for — No fragrance or flowers: Too little light is the usual cause; this orchid needs strong light to bloom and release its night-time scent.

The reasons lady of the night isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming lady of the night 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 lady of the night 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 lady of the night to flower

Maximise sun. Give lady of the night 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 lady of the night and get the feeding right with the lady of the night 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

Lady of the Night 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 lady of the night care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Lady of the Night blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my lady of the night flower?

Lady of the Night 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 lady of the night bloom?

Give lady of the night 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 lady of the night normally bloom?