Question
Hello,

I live in Sacramento, CA, zone 9, and I have a problem with getting my Brugmansia and Datura to bloom. The Brugmansia is labeled as arborea, and I抳e had it for almost two years. It had flower buds at the time it was purchased, and those bloomed. Ever since then it has produced flower buds, but those fall off before they grow flowers.

I抦 not sure what species the Datura is, but the cultivar is labeled as 慚iguel抯 Choice.?This one I抳e had for about a year, and it grows flowers that don抰 actually bloom. They collapse and shrivel up the next day before it opens up. The leaves to the Datura are actually quite ragged with a lot of holes, and I suspect there may be some kind of pest eating the leaves, but I could not find any. Is there anything I can do to coax the plants into blooming and perhaps find a solution to ridding the Datura of any pests?

Thanks.

Answer
Hi Brian,
Thanx for your question. In regard to the brugmansia.  If it gets pretty hot in your area, sometimes the plant will not bloom.  Although this plant is native to Ecuador and Peru it grows in the lowland mountains where it isn't exposed to frost but it's not exposed to extemes in heat like you have from time-to-time in Sacramento.  Also, the roots don't like to be waterlogged so make sure the soil is moist but not soggy but I'd say it's probably heat.  The plant will usually bloom until winter in your area so hopefully when it is cool, it will start blooming.  These plants are also heavy feeders so try a fertilizer that is rated for flowering shrubs usually something higher in Potassium (K) and Phosphorus (P) than Nitrogen (N).  In regard to the datura.  You may have spider mites.  These insects are tiny and when you look closely at the leaves, especially the underside, they look like sprinkles of red pepper.  You can wash them off with mild soapy water.  That's the best way to get rid of them.  The datura is a heavy feeder too so make sure you provide it the same kind of fertilizer as the brugmansia and don't over water it either.  Datura will tolerate more heat the brugmansia and it will benefit from direct sunlight too.  I hope this helps.
Tom