Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Spanish Stonecrop bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Spanish Stonecrop, Blue Carpet Sedum, Blue-grey Stonecrop (Sedum hispanicum).

More about spanish stonecrop

About Spanish Stonecrop

Sedum hispanicum · also called Spanish Stonecrop, Blue Carpet Sedum · flowering

Sedum hispanicum is a low, mat-forming annual or short-lived perennial succulent native to rocky limestone slopes and dry hillsides across southern Europe and western Asia. Its fine-textured, cylindrical, blue-grey to glaucous leaves form a dense carpet just 5 cm tall, and clusters of tiny white-pink star-shaped flowers cover the mat in late spring and early summer. Full sun and sharply drained, lean soil are the two essential requirements; rich or wet soil causes leggy growth and root rot. Sedum is listed as non-toxic to cats and dogs by the ASPCA.

Plant type: flowering

The reasons spanish stonecrop isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming spanish stonecrop 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 spanish stonecrop 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 spanish stonecrop to flower

Maximise sun. Give spanish stonecrop 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 spanish stonecrop and get the feeding right with the spanish stonecrop 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

Spanish Stonecrop 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 spanish stonecrop care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Spanish Stonecrop blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my spanish stonecrop flower?

Spanish Stonecrop 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 spanish stonecrop bloom?

Give spanish stonecrop 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 spanish stonecrop normally bloom?