Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Trailing African daisy bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Trailing African daisy, Freeway daisy, Trailing daisy (Osteospermum fruticosum).

More about trailing african daisy

About Trailing African daisy

Osteospermum fruticosum · also called Trailing African daisy, Freeway daisy · flowering

Trailing African daisy is a vigorous, spreading perennial grown as an annual in cold climates, producing prolific white to lavender-purple daisy-like flowers with a distinctive dark center. It thrives in full sun and well-drained soil, tolerates coastal conditions and drought once established, and makes an excellent groundcover or container spiller.

Plant type: flowering

Watch for — Aphids: Clusters on new growth and buds, causing distortion. Blast off with water or treat with insecticidal soap; encourage natural predators such as ladybirds.

The reasons trailing african daisy isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming trailing african daisy 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 trailing african daisy 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 trailing african daisy to flower

Maximise sun. Give trailing african daisy 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 trailing african daisy and get the feeding right with the trailing african daisy 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

Trailing African daisy 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 trailing african daisy care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Trailing African daisy blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my trailing african daisy flower?

Trailing African daisy 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 trailing african daisy bloom?

Give trailing african daisy 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 trailing african daisy normally bloom?