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Why Won’t My Forsythia Bloom – 7 Reasons Behind

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What is better than planting a forsythia in your garden and expecting an outburst of yellow and golden flowers at the start of the spring season? But what if the forsythia you planted fails to bloom this year? And you are on the quest to know why won’t my forsythia bloom?

If this is the case, then you’re at the right place to get all your confusion sorted about your forsythia not blooming.

This article briefly describes all the possible reasons to give you the answer to your question why won’t my forsythia bloom?

Forsythia

Forsythia shrubs are known for their yellow flowers. Their season of interest is early spring. They are easy to handle plants and are commonly planted due to their adaptability. They are often planted in groups for a spectacular display but can be planted singularly too.

Why Won’t My Forsythia Bloom?

Let us have a look at seven common reasons why a forsythia plant fails to bloom in the spring season:

1. Buried Crown

The part of the plant where its roots join the stems is called the crown. If placed correctly, it should be at a height of one inch above the ground. If the crown is being buried underneath soil or if it is covered heavily by mulch, there is a chance that your forsythia plant won’t bloom properly this year.

Treatment

To avoid this, try planting the crown with enough space around it for proper blooming. Leave at least one or two inches of space around the crown.

2. Excess Supply Of Nitrogen

The presence of excess nitrogen in the soil can cause foliage to grow with little or no flowers.

If the forsythia plant fails to bloom completely with no presence of flowers at all, then this could reasonably be the problem.

Treatment

If you plan to fertilize your garden, try to use a well-balanced fertilizer that contains the right amount of all the required nutrients without causing excessiveness of nitrogen.

If naturally rich in nutrients soil is used, fertilizers may not be required for a forsythia plant to bloom.

3. Pruning

The most important factor that comes with the planting of a forsythia plant is pruning. Pruning is the process of removal of unwanted parts of plants or trees that are

  • not required for the growth or reproduction of plants
  • not visually appealing
  • injurious to health

The flowers of a forsythia plant that are supposed to bloom in the spring season are set in the year before they bloom. If pruning is not done timely, there exists a chance that you might end up cutting the wood that has flowers growing on it.

Treatment

It is advised that pruning must be done two weeks after the forsythia plant has bloomed or in early spring when you can see what to prune.

It is also considered important to prune the forsythia plant branches down to the ground and avoid cutting just the tips of the branches.

Why Wont My Forsythia Bloom 2
via Pixabay

4. Inadequate Sunlight

Forsythia plants need full bright sun to grow. Look for a proper place in your garden to plant a forsythia plant, where it can have easy excess to sunlight throughout the day.

Treatment

If little or no sunlight is provided to the plant, it might fail to bloom or bloom with little or no flowers. If your plant is not getting at least six hours of sunlight to grow, you should consider moving it to a different location.

5. Low Temperature

In the early spring season, when the flowers of the forsythia plant are in the process of blooming or are about to bloom and the temperature falls, there is a chance that buds might freeze and never open.

Treatment

An unusual decrease in temperature can prevent flowering and blooming in a forsythia plant.

To mitigate the effect of low temperature on a forsythia plant, you can wrap burlap around the smaller shrubs or buds. This will prevent the plant from freezing and never blooming again.

Also, if you keep on watering the forsythia plant occasionally in winters, the freeze is less likely to happen. Freeze damage mostly occurs in very dry plants.

6. Old Plant

The forsythia plant that reaches mature dimensions and is not pruned regularly might grow branches that no longer produce flowers. This is because the plant is slowing down in its old age.

Treatment

In this case, deep pruning of an older plant might prove to help rejuvenate the old plant. Cut about one-third of the forsythia plant and make deep cuts between branches so the plant can receive proper sunlight.

It can take up to a year to bloom and produce fresh flowers.

7. Fungal Diseases

A few fungal diseases can damage a forsythia plant and make it unable to bloom. Galls is a common disease that occurs in plants in which a fungus called ‘phomopsis’ can kill some branches and form thick brown clusters on the shrubs.

Treatment

This can be prevented by keeping a check on the branches of a forsythia plant and by pruning the plant occasionally. The branches that are affected by the fungal disease should be removed from the plant.


Conclusion

A forsythia plant can be a beautiful addition to your garden if it is maintained properly. If the spring season arrives and your forsythia plant is still not blooming, then there might be a problem with your plant. Look carefully for the reason why it is unable to bloom and start working for the removal of such a cause.

The possible reasons that prevent your plant from blooming might include an excess of nitrogen, lack of sunlight, fungal diseases, an old plant, or temperature fluctuation. All these problems are described in detail above.

This article contains all the information you need to answer the question why won’t my forsythia bloom. If you have any more queries regarding your plant, feel free to get in touch.