You've found the famous Dave's Garden website! Join this friendly global community that shares tips and ideas for home and gardens, along with seeds and plants!
Check out the DG homepage for a brief overview of what you'll find in this gardening mega-site.
Login
If you don't have an account yet, visit the registration page to sign up.
I've recently added a beautiful China Doll to my inhouse garden. I've always been told that they do not flower, but looking on line I found one site that told me they can flower. Is this true? If so, how can I make that happen? Thanks for any help.
They do flower, but in my experience growing them as houseplants I never got one to bloom. I've grown the related Radermachera 'Kunming' outdoors (with greenhouse in the winter) and it bloomed pretty easily. Never tried R. sinica outdoors, but that is something you could try keeping it outdoors for the warmer months and see if that makes it want to bloom.
China doll's botanical name is Radermachera sinica. It is native to tropical regions of China where it can grow as tall 30 feet and will produce white or yellow trumpet shaped flowers. But that won't happen indoors. It needs lots of bright light, but protection from direct midday sun. A north or east windowsill is best. It also is a bit fussy about temperature, preferring constant temps in the 65 to 75 degree range and away from warm or cold drafts. It doesn't respond well to changes in light, so find a good location for it and leave it there. China doll is a notoriously finicky plant that will drop leaves rather dramatically for many reasons, including a change in environment, improper light, irregular watering, temperature change, pests, normal aging, and repotting. My overall advice is to keep it potbound, prune it regularly, and provide a consistent environment for it.
