Do you have any advise or explanation? I can't figure out what these guys are missing. They've been starting flowers, then drying them off and replacing them with leaves... And then start all over again. It's been going on for so long with both seedlings and my adult plant that I've come to see it as normal. Still, I'd really like to actually see the flowers develop and open someday. I water them well (no fertilizer since months though).
I have an A. malherbei, the only Aloinopsis that has seemed to do well here in Zone 10. It is quadruple the size as when I bought it 2 years ago, but it has never bloomed. Not even a bud! I have no idea why, but since it seems happy otherwise, I'm just letting it pass. Sorry I could not help!
ReplyDeleteThe plants look good. What are their age? They still look young and small. They should flower in late winter or early spring. They may be so young they haven't set up their proper flowering schedule, which is controlled by hormones. I'm not sure why they are pushing buds up and then aborting them. With young plants that is usually due to insufficient food (sugar) supplies; either due to not enough leaves, or insufficient light, or both. My general rule is that if the plant is under five years old from seed it just may not be old enough to flower. Yes, some seedlings can flower earlier than this, but there are always over achievers at one end and laggards at the other. The vast majority of plants end up in the middle for flowering age, which I consider around the five year mark.
ReplyDeleteSince they look good and are continuing to grow I suggest patience. See what happens next year in the February to April period. That's when mature plants usually produce most of their flowers. Take time and enjoy your lithops, it looks like they are putting on a good flower show for you.
Your A. malherbei are beautiful little plants and they will only get bigger and better, as well as begin to flower, with time. :)