When Do Lotus Flowers Bloom? A Detailed Guide to the Latest Blooming Season
The lotus is one of China's top ten famous flowers. It belongs to the Nymphaeaceae family and is a perennial aquatic herbaceous flower. Since ancient times it has been a precious aquatic flower of palace gardens and private courtyards. Its blooming season runs from late June to September. With the development of modern technology, we can also use light-control techniques to change the lotus's blooming season. Now let's take a look together at when lotus flowers bloom!
When Do Lotus Flowers Bloom?
Lotus flowers generally bloom in the height of summer. Some lotus flowers are already in full bloom in early June, and the blooming season is from June to September. Flower colors vary, including white, pink, deep red, light purple, yellow, or bi-colored. Of course, due to climate change in recent years, the blooming season may also shift. China's eight great lotus viewing spots are Xindu Gui Lake, Hong Lake in Hubei, West Lake in Hangzhou, East Lake in Wuhan, Lian Lake in Yueyang, Weishan Lake in Shandong, Daming Lake in Jinan, and Xuanwu Lake in Nanjing.
The Blooming Process of the Lotus
The lotus begins to open at around 3:00 in the morning. First the outer petals gradually stretch open, and the inner petals at the top of the bud loosen along with them. By around 5:30 in the morning, the opening expands to 2.5-3.5 cm, and it does not close until around 9:00 in the morning. After 15:00 in the afternoon, the bud closes completely again. Blooming during the day is also affected by temperature changes. After 8:00 in the morning, when the temperature rises to 21°C, a small number of flowers begin to open; as it continues to rise to 24-26°C, blooming gradually increases; when the temperature rises to the optimum blooming range of 28-30°C, the day's blooming peak occurs.
Why Potted Lotus Flowers Do Not Bloom
1. Variety differences: Edible lotus root and wild lotus naturally produce few flowers, or even none at all. Their rhizomes spread strongly and require a large space to expand, so of course potted plants show no flower buds and do not bloom. Seed lotus roots bought from vegetable markets or roadside stalls, or of unknown origin, mostly belong to edible lotus root. Edible lotus root has a plump body, forms straight strips, and tastes sweet and crisp; the plant's leaves are tall and large, with uniform leaf color and shape. Potted lotus seed roots are crescent-shaped, with a smaller root body and a puckery, dense taste; the plant's leaves are smaller and its growth is weaker, and different varieties differ in leaf color and shape. Different varieties of potted lotus have different blooming seasons.
2. Insufficient light: The lotus is a sun-loving plant. If the planting environment has poor ventilation and insufficient light, or if it encounters more than a week of continuous rain during the flower bud differentiation stage, the leaves cannot provide the plant with nutrients for reproductive development through photosynthesis.
3. Pot too small: When large and medium-sized varieties are planted in smaller containers or in pots with a wide mouth and pointed bottom, the rhizomes have little room to expand. When they enter the bud stage, the rhizomes are crowded and there is no space for flower buds to grow.
4. Temperature too low: During the flower bud differentiation stage of the lotus, if the daytime noon temperature is below 28°C and the nighttime temperature is below 18°C, the flower buds cannot differentiate normally.
5. Improper fertilization: Soil that is too rich, fertilizing too early, or too much nitrogen fertilizer will all cause excessive vegetative growth. When vegetative growth is excessive and reproductive growth weakens, the plant only grows leaves and produces no flower buds.
6. Excessive density: There are two situations of excessive density. First, the spacing between pots is small, so there are many pots per unit area, the leaves shade each other, and ventilation is poor, which is unfavorable for flower bud production. Second, the leaf stalks in the pot are densely packed. If two seed lotus roots are planted in one pot, or if one seed lotus root, besides its terminal bud, also develops its other daughter rhizomes and lateral buds very well, that is equivalent to two or three seed lotus roots, resulting in excessive density in the pot, which is unfavorable for flower bud differentiation. The solution is to use secondary replanting to divide the pots as early as possible.
7. Improper depth: When small varieties are planted in deep bucket-shaped pots, the soil is too deep and the leaf buds and flower buds cannot emerge from the soil. If the mud layer is less than 16 cm deep, or the pot mud is too loose, then in windy areas, the leaves and stalks of large and medium-sized varieties move, and the root system cannot stabilize the plant. The flower buds attached to the base of the leaf stalks have no peace and cannot develop normally.
8. Light-transmitting container: Lotus flower bud differentiation requires a dark environment. Glass containers or white plastic pots are unfavorable for flower bud differentiation.