Successful Growing of CROWN of THORNS PLANTS

[LilyBelle]

I recently obtained some Crown of Thorn plants and need advice about their care & nurturing. I have had one plant that survived now for about 2 years, but has not produced any flowers since I received it two years ago. I transplanted it after about 6 months from its original plastic pot with holes in the bottom to a bigger terra cotta pot with holes in the bottom using regular Potting Soil for Houseplants from the Garden area of a Hardware store. It continues to grow and put out leaves, but no flowers. My new plants are in the plastic pots with holes, but Iam fearful to transplant them until I have had them a little while to settle in since they were mailed from a Nursery in Ohio to me (in Central Colorado). I really want the new ones (I have 10 new plants of various colored flowers) to survive. My concern is when to transplant to better terra cotta pots (which seemed to help my other plant grow better), how much bigger should the pot be than the plant to be transferred to it. How much water do I give them now while in these plastic pots that do not absorb water? When transplanted, what kind of soil should I use to put the Crown of thorns in? When do I fertilize these plants & what kind of Fertilizer should I use? And my biggest question is how to get them to flower?

 

[Fernsdaddy]

You plant should have bloomed by now unless its not getting enough sun. Mine sits in the full sun all summer. Planting mix is what ever you like, make sure it drains fast so it doesn't stay wet to long, I water mine when the soil pulls away from the sides of the pot they can take some abuse. The only time I fertilizer mine is in the spring before I put put it out for the summer and then again in the fall before I bring in for the winter. I use what ever fertilizer I have on hand their not that fussy, I add a small hand full of composted cow manure with potting mix, I wouldn't worry about how wide the pot is but how deep it is,. there roots grow down to find water, if you pot is 4 inches wide I would move up to a 6 inch pot but make sure the roots have room to grow down, I never water from the top I use a deep dish filled with water then you not have to worry about over watering it, Give your Crown of thorns more sun if you can to help it bloom.

 

[LilyBelle]

Thank you Fernsdaddy. My 2 year old plant is in a very brightly lighted room where it does get a lot of sunlight. It also has a very bright aquarium light next to it that is on most of the time. So I am not sure sunlight is it's problem. It has a lot of leaves & healthy stalks as well as a good deep pot. But I think maybe I need to back off on the water. I let the top get dry before watering, but never to the point of the dirt pulling back from the sides. I worry about root rot if I try watering from the bottom also, so I always have watered from the top. But I really would like to get it to flower. My Mother had a plant that was over 60 years old & it bloom year around. I think she neglected hers a lot more than I do mine. I know she did not water hers a lot.

 

[LilyBelle]

I also know she placed hers outside in the summer. I cannot do that here because of our weather. We only have about 3 weeks of warm hot weather both day & night. I live at 7,100 ft above sea level & our summers are usually about 80's during the day but can drop to 50's at night. The night drops can be pretty drastic & I am worried if I put these outside they would die from those drastic temperature changes. Our house temperature is much more constant. We do not have air conditioning so it does not get blasts of cold. Our indoor temp is pretty consistent at 68 to 72 degrees. Our humidity, because of altitude and location is very LOW year around, which is why I have watered a little more frequently than my Mother did. She was in a humid climate along the Mississippi River in Illinois. Colorado just does not have anywhere near that humidity.

 

[Larisa]

And it will not bloom if the pot is big. He needs cramped pot.