Anthruim wont bloom why?

Question

i have a anthurim and it has green leaves but , no flowers i give it plant food and it gets light , what else can i do for it. can i give it violet plant food?

Answer 1

In our rainforest atrium we have numerous anthuriums including some that are quite rare. I suspect your problem is lack of light and perhaps water. According to Dr. Tom Croat the vast majority of anthuriums are epiphytes (tree dwellers). As a result they get a lot of rainwater since they live in rainforests and a great deal of bright yet slightly diffused light. I hang many of the blooming species and hybrids in hanging baskets where they get quite a lot of sun. Right now I have an Anthurium 'obake', an Hawaiian hybrid, with three beautiful spathes and spadix. That plant gets very bright light most of the day. Living in an apartment may make this difficult but try to get it where it will get more diffused but very bright light and water it frequently. I water mine almost daily during the summer and 3 to 5 times a week the rest of the year. Since they are rainforest plants they need far more water than most growers dare to give them. A suggestion, make sure the potting media is very well draining. I mix a lot of peat, Perlite, volcanic rock and orchid bark into my potting soil. Seems to work very well. You can see some of the plants in our collection on the web by finding the Exotic Rainforest on the web.

Answer 2

Anthuriums need medium to bright light or their leaf petioles elongate unattractively and they will not bloom. An east facing unobstructed window or a west facing window where light is filtered through a sheer curtain would be perfect.

If you are fertilizing and keeping the soil moist but not wet at all times it may be going through a resting period (which it needs) where it should not be fertilized and you should wait until the top inch of soil is dry before watering again.

During the rest period the anthurium’s growth will slow down – when you see it pick up again begin to fertilize and water more frequently and you should get flowers.