With fantastic and regal blooms found in shades of orange, yellow, and white, Birds of Paradise are prized for their flowers. However, when it comes to these Bird of Paradise blooms, the expression “good things come to those who wait” definitely holds true. And since a Bird of Paradise can take years to produce its first bloom, some plant owners wonder how to encourage faster flower development.
A Bird of Paradise will only produce blooms after it has reached maturity, which can take three to five years. After that, encourage blooms by giving your plant lots and lots of bright, direct light and prioritizing the plant’s overall health with proper watering and a healthy care routine.
Ready to help your Bird of Paradise achieve its full potential indoors? Check out our tips below to learn more about this plant’s care needs and what is required to help it produce its famous, signature flowers.
Will a Bird of Paradise Bloom Indoors?
We’ve seen stunning blooms on outdoor Birds of Paradise, but can we ever attain flowers from these beauties in our homes? The short answer to this question is “yes,” though it may take some work to achieve this desired outcome.
Generally, getting a flowering plant to bloom indoors can be challenging since lots of light and proper moisture balance are essential to bloom. And a Bird of Paradise can be especially finicky regarding blooms due to its care needs and unique development.
Native to South Africa, Bird of Paradise is a tropical plant that thrives in consistently warm and humid temperatures. In these proper conditions, Bird of Paradise can produce dozens of blooms in a growing season. That said, Bird of Paradise is characterized by a continual need for warmth and bright light, so it’s rarely grown outdoors in the United States, aside from tropical areas, such as parts of Florida and California.
But with its love of stability, Bird of Paradise adapts well to indoor conditions, growing up to 6 feet tall and 4 feet wide and quickly filling a corner with its glossy, 18-inch leaves. And while this is impressive, most plant lovers are excited to see the Bird of Paradise blooms, though they arrive much later than the plant’s tall stems and large leaves.
With a bit of patience, though, the blooms can arrive – especially if your Bird of Paradise remains in good health. Now let’s look at some of the top reasons your Bird of Paradise may not be blooming and some advice for addressing these issues.
Reason 1: Your Plant is Not Mature
Unlike many garden flowers, which can mature in a matter of months, Bird of Paradise needs a little more time to establish itself before blooming. In fact, it is common for these plants to withhold flower production until they are between 3 and 4 years old.
This can be frustrating for plant lovers since there isn’t much you can do to encourage faster blooms in an immature plant. Yet, on the bright side, if a baby plant has not bloomed, you can rest assured that your care routine is not to blame. This is important because gardeners are notoriously eager to “fix” their plants, but unneeded changes to your Bird of Paradise environment can do more harm than good.
With this in mind, avoid making unnecessary corrections, such as over-fertilizing or adding grow lights, and just allow your plant to continue on its path to maturity.
Reason 2: Dormancy
Some living organisms can grow all year long, but plants typically do not. Instead, plants have growing seasons, separated by periods of rest, which are called dormancy.
A plant’s growing season usually coincides with the ideal conditions of its natural habitat. During this time, the plant will achieve most of the growth and flower production for that year – potentially growing several inches and producing blooms in rapid succession.
In North America, the Bird of Paradise growing season extends from late spring to early fall, after which cooler temperatures and decreased sunlight will cause the plant to enter a period similar to hibernation. This adaptation is designed to help the plant survive colder times and allows the plant to store energy and nutrients for the spring. As a result, your Bird of Paradise will stop growing leaves and flowers, though it should otherwise appear healthy.
As with an immature Bird of Paradise, there is nothing you need to do to “help” your plant through dormancy. Winter provides a natural state of rest for your plant, and with consistent care, it should be ready to grow and bloom again when the warmth of the sun returns.
Reason 3: Not Enough Light
If you have a mature plant in its growing season, the most likely reason that your plant isn’t blooming is because it does not have enough access to bright direct light. Birds of Paradise love the sunshine, and they need a lot of it to have enough energy to produce blooms.
While some indoor plants only want indirect sunlight, A Bird of Paradise loves the brightness and heat of direct sunlight and will thrive with five hours of direct light daily. Sunlight is so essential to Bird of Paradise bloom development that a plant receiving inadequate light will not produce flowers, even if mature.
If you suspect that lack of light might be an issue for your Bird of Paradise, place your plant in a location that receives direct sunlight, such as near a South-facing window or an enclosed porch. Just make sure that your plant is not in the way of any cold drafts as the seasons change.
Even if you live in a space without large windows, there are steps you can take to help your plant bloom. For example, if your Bird of Paradise is in a container that you can easily transport, consider placing your plant outside on warm, sunny days. Even a few days of bright sun exposure can make a dramatic difference in the health of your plant.
If you live in an apartment with few windows or an area without much sun, grow lights provide a great alternative to natural sunlight. These lights are affordable and offer similar benefits to the sun’s rays – all without producing harmful heat.
But there can be too much of a good thing, so be sure to turn off the grow lights at night. Constant light exposure isn’t healthy for a plant, and even a Bird of Paradise needs the night time to recharge and rest. Find more information on our favorite grow lights here.
Reason 4: Transplant Shock
Did you recently repot your Bird of Paradise? Was it given to you within the past month as a gift? If so, your plant may be exhibiting signs of shock. While this may sound alarming, it is actually a natural phase for many plants, and your Bird of Paradise will recover with time.
Shock usually results in limpness, leaf yellowing, and a lack of growth and blooms and occurs when a plant adjusts to differences in its habitat. It is extremely common to see shock after plants are placed in new containers or divided. Shock can even result in a plant that appears to be dying.
However, like dormancy, shock serves as an opportunity for the plant to conserve energy, focusing on its roots, and reducing the stress that can result from sustaining new growth. While it can be frustrating to see your plant stop growing after transplanting it, think of it as a time for rest.
Once your plant can adjust to its new home, it should begin to show signs of recovery and will begin to produce healthy blooms again.
Reason 5: Watering Issues
Improper watering habits are a common cause of plant health issues, such as a lack of blooms. Often, this improper watering takes the form of overwatering your plant, though underwatering and erratic watering can also harm your Bird of Paradise.
Soggy soil caused by overwatering and poorly draining potting mix will quickly result in root rot. Waterlogged roots will impede growth of all kinds, resulting in yellowing, leaf drop, and a lack of healthy flowers.
One common way that plant owners accidentally sabotage plants is by watering plants on a set schedule, such as on the same day every week. However, depending on light exposure, temperature fluctuations, and other considerations, your plant may require varying amounts of water – resulting in a lack of proper hydration.
Instead of relying on your calendar, insert your finger into the plant’s container at least once a week. If you notice that the top 1-2 inches of soil is dry, it is time to water your plant. If it’s still damp, wait a few days and check again.
Always water your Bird of Paradise thoroughly until water drains from the bottom of the container. This ensures that the water you pour in has reached all portions of the root system.
Keep in mind that underwatering can harm your plant’s health, as well. While testing the soil’s dryness with your finger will help prevent all types of watering issues, you may also want to look for signs that the soil is pulling away from the edges of the pot. This is a sign that you may need to test the soil more frequently and that your plant is experiencing frequent bouts of thirst.
How to Encourage a Mature Bird of Paradise to Bloom
Having addressed the most common causes of insufficient blooms in your Bird of Paradise, is there anything else you can do to encourage flowering? The answer is yes.
One controversial approach that some plant owners suggest is allowing your Bird of Paradise to become root-bound. Essentially, this means allowing your plant to overgrow its container so that its roots begin to run out of space. Doing this causes the plant stress, which can force the plant to bloom.
Ultimately, plants bloom as a means of propagation. If a plant encounters an environmental threat, it may try to bloom to encourage the survival of its species. However, this also means that the plant has been placed in an unhealthy living situation – so much so that it thinks it might die.
A Bird of Paradise grown in the same soil and container for several years can quickly deplete the nutrient content of its soil and may end up with permanently misshapen rhizomes. As a result, your rootbound Bird of Paradise will likely not bloom successfully in this state for multiple years, and its health and appearance will start to suffer.
While it is ultimately your choice to adopt this method, focusing on the overall health of your plant is a better long-term strategy for protecting your Bird of Paradise. And the most natural strategy for encouraging your Bird of Paradise to bloom indoors is to replicate the conditions in which it naturally thrives.
In addition to the care tips previously provided, consider your Bird of Paradise potting mix, remembering that your plant prefers well-draining soil, with ingredients such as clay (for structure) and sand or silt (to help water move freely through the pot.) This will help make sure your plant has adequate support within its container and reduce the likelihood of watering issues.
Additionally, don’t forget that tropical plants love humidity – which is not the same as increasing the water in your plant’s container. Instead, maintaining moist air around your plant supports the growth of leaves and blooms and supports successful photosynthesis.
The ideal humidity for plant growth is usually around 50%, though tropical plants can comfortably withstand humidity of up to 60 or 70%. Levels this high are unusual for most indoor settings, especially if air conditioning and heating units are running throughout the year.
With this in mind, consider adding a humidifier to your plant’s space to increase the moisture balance in the air year-round. You can also consider grouping your Bird of Paradise together with other humidity-loving plants. As each plant releases water into the air (through transpiration), it will increase the humidity in the area.
You may also wish to consider the introduction of fertilizer to help support your plant’s growth. But this strategy should be approached with caution since fertilizers are often overused by plant lovers and can build up to toxic levels in your plant’s container.
Fertilizer is not a “cure-all” and shouldn’t be used in place of addressing other health issues. Furthermore, if your plant is not blooming, lack of fertilizer is probably not the main issue. Most plants will not need to be fertilized more than once a month during the growing season, and it is wise to skip the fertilizer altogether in the winter.
If you want to introduce some additional nutrients through fertilizer, consider using a pre-packaged blend, such as Jacks 20-20-20 All Purpose Fertilizer or another blend designed for flowering plants, and always follow the instructions carefully.
Do not allow any fertilizer to touch the stems or leaves of the plant, and immediately suspend fertilizer use if you notice any yellowing or signs of shock in your Bird of Paradise.
Closing Thoughts
The old adage, “let nature take its course,” is often true when caring for plants. Healthy Birds of Paradise will almost always grow and thrive. And though they may not bloom as quickly as plants that are pushed to do so by becoming root bound, they will often reward plant owners in time.
With this in mind, focus less on the flowers and more on the plant’s overall health. The flowers will come in time, and a vibrant plant will have many healthy seasons to produce them.
Bright sun, humidity, proper watering, and warm temperatures will keep your tropical plant happy, while a proper soil blend can provide the nutrients needed for continued growth. Practice patience during times of transplant shock and dormancy – these are natural stages and are essential to the healing and recovery of your plant.
Also, don’t forget that if your plant is younger than 3 to 4 years old, it will need more time to mature before producing blooms. This, too, is natural. Avoiding any attempts to force the plant to bloom, such as over-fertilizing, will help set your plant up for a successful maturity down the road.
By following these basic tips and prioritizing the well-being of your plant, you can help ensure that any blooms your plant produces are not at the expense of its overall health and that your Bird of Paradise stays healthy for many future seasons.