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Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Cut Back Difficult Plants to Get Them to Change

Q. This is the 8th year for our honeysuckle plants and, although they appear healthy, we cannot get them to produce blossoms. They do get one or two blossoms each year but do not produce massive blossoms. Tried various fertilizers to no avail. What can we do to stimulate blossoms?

A. I also had a problem with honeysuckle not flowering many years ago. We have a basic tenet in horticulture. When a plant is not doing well or not what we want, cut it back hard. I did that with honeysuckle and it started to bloom. 

I don't think it will be a special fertilizer or anything else. Make sure it gets fertilized once or twice a year, usually in the spring and as early as February. Make sure it gets plenty of water. This is not a desert plant but it can handle our extremes. 

To improve it's looks, add a half a cubic foot of compost to the base of the plant and watered in thoroughly. You can do that now. Viragrow in North Las Vegas has compost available for $2.50 for one cubic foot bag. I consult with them but that is the best compost available and it will improve the health of plants if they are struggling due to soil problems.

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