Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Lemboglossum rossii bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Ross's Orchid, Mexican Odontoglossum (Lemboglossum rossii).

More about lemboglossum rossii

About Lemboglossum rossii

Lemboglossum rossii · also called Ross's Orchid, Mexican Odontoglossum · flowering

Lemboglossum rossii (often sold as Odontoglossum rossii) is a cool-growing Mexican and Central American epiphyte from cloud forests. It produces large, showy white-to-pink flowers blotched maroon from compact pseudobulbs. Give it bright-indirect light, cool nights, high humidity and fine bark kept lightly moist; it sulks in heat and stale, stagnant air.

Plant type: flowering

Watch for — Heat stress: This is a cool grower; sustained warm nights cause limp growth, failure to flower and weak pseudobulbs. Provide cooler nights and good air movement, especially in summer.

The reasons lemboglossum rossii isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming lemboglossum rossii 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 lemboglossum rossii 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 lemboglossum rossii to flower

Maximise sun. Give lemboglossum rossii 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 lemboglossum rossii and get the feeding right with the lemboglossum rossii 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

Lemboglossum rossii 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 lemboglossum rossii care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Lemboglossum rossii blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my lemboglossum rossii flower?

Lemboglossum rossii 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 lemboglossum rossii bloom?

Give lemboglossum rossii 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 lemboglossum rossii normally bloom?