Clowesia Rebecca Northen

[My Green Pets]

Second blooming of this plant, November 2022.
Flowers are a bit more shapely. Will keep it another year

[Roberta]

Wow, mine aren't even close... still have all their leaves. Mine won't bloom until January or February. These look great!

[isurus79]

I'd also love to know how you get them to bloom so early! Wish I could smell it...

[My Green Pets]

I dunno guys. Latitude? In my location:

Summer solstice - 15 hrs of daylight
Autumn equinox - 12 hours of daylight
Winter solstice - 9 hours of daylight

I first noticed the spike nubbin right at the autumn equinox. Maybe the three-hour decrease in light is enough to get it going.

If we look at the same info for San Diego:

Summer solstice - 14 hrs of daylight
Autumn equinox - 12 hours of daylight
Winter solstice - 10 hours of daylight

Not a huge difference, so who knows.

I adjust watering to the plant, I don't force dormancy. In fact I'm still watering and fertilizing (albeit less frequently), but I'll stop once the plant has flowered its last spike of the season.

[Roberta]

I have long wondered what the trigger is for dormancy (and for waking up). The species (and the ancestors of the hybrids) all come from relatively tropical latitudes where days and nights are pretty much the same length all year. It's rain that is seasonal. Somehow they are able to "anticipate" the end of the rainy season to start dormancy, and to "anticipate" the start of the rains to put out roots and new growth. Maybe humidity? Atmospheric pressure? I am curious...