Ask-a-Dave's-Gardener: Brunfelsia dwarf variety - flowering query, 1 by giardinaggio9

giardinaggio9 wrote:
My dwarf variety of Brunfelsia, the Yesterday Today and Tomorrow plant were planted a year ago in December 2013. The area in which they are situated is comprised of two separate raised beds. Each has good drainage. At the time, compost with some general purpose fertiliser was added to improve the sandy soil. I was most disappointed when by late spring they had only produced one or two blooms. Into summer they still hadn't flowered so I sprinkled potash around each plant but to no avail. Latterly I have also been watering seaweed fertiliser around the root areas at regular intervals. Our garden is very small and the bushes are situated in different positions 4 of which are along a fence and south facing. The others (9), are arranged in a square shape around a dwarf magnolia and therefore exposed to the sun at different times during the course of the day. Why are they not flowering? They are also prone to whitefly infestation and although I have been spraying them regularly with pyrethrum as per manufacturer's instructions, these bugs keep coming back after a couple of days. Could they be partly the cause for the poor flowering or is there something else I should consider? I was also wondering whether the plants are too close together. I asked at the nursery this same question but was assured this was not the case. Any advice or suggestions would be most appreciated.