Den. nobile question
 

I have a large soft cane Den. that I believe is nobile. I bought it at a school fete a few years back and it hasn't flowered or set keikis.
Local growers tell me the thing to do with soft canes in this area is to put them outdoors on Mothers Day and bring them back into the shade house on Fathers Day and resume watering and feeding.
This is to get them to flower and not set keikis.
My problem is that the damn thing won't stop growing. It has two half grown new canes and another two just starting.
My other soft canes have dutifully set their terminal leaves and are telling to hang them in the pergola.
What do I do with this one?

Baz in Oz

If you gradually reduce the watering and keep it cooler in the fall, you plant will get into the winter rest mood. Den. noblie needs cool, bright and dry winter rest to bloom well, so by late fall, you should stop watering and fertilizing, resume watering when you see the the buds forming in late winter or early spring.

Baz , my Den. nobiles live outside and are under 50% shade cloth. I stop watering when the tip leaf on the cane matures and only start watering again when I see the first flower nodes. I have noticed ,however that I have some of them that do not flower well every year and will only flower well every three or even four years . Nobile "golden showers "is one of these. But when it does flower it is quite stunning.
Des

I agree, some don't seem to flower regularly even if I stick to a strict schedule. The advice above should help you.

I feel your pain........;-)

Thanks for the advice Tom-DE, Des, and Bolero. My problem is that the plant won't stop growing and if I start to 'wean' it, the four new canes will suffer.
If all else fails, I suppose I could convince myself it is really a foliage plant and see what happens.

Baz

I think the new canes will continue to grow even if you wean it. What are your minimum temps there? I am not sure which state or area you live in, if you live in Brisbane the advice would be different to if you live in Melbourne.

There is plenty of energy in the plant to grow the canes. I have developing canes on my plants but I have just stopped watering suddenly but kept humidity high during the cooler weather.

When you do get that plant to flower ,it will blow your mind !!!.I have had some of mine flower on the previous years growths that have not flowered ,and the result is a mass of flowers

Thanks guys.
Bolero, I live in 'Glass House Country' or the Sunshine Coast Hinterland to your 'foreigners', a little north of Brisbane. The temp. gets down to single figures but I haven't seen a frost in six winters.
My 'maybe nobile' has 15 canes besides the babies so hopefully it will keep the new ones nourished during the weaning period.
I will keep you posted.

Baz

Please do, we can all learn from this. At the moment I can't imagine it's too cold there right now. I think weaning won't hurt your plant at all.