PlantFiles Pictures: Elephant Bush (Portulacaria afra), 1 by thistlesifter

thistlesifter wrote:
There is a secret to making them bloom. It will bloom sporadically at best. Here is the secret.

Let it get really really stressed. The leaves will get wrinkled, it won't hurt the plant. I typically will let it go a month to 6 weeks without any water. It does not hurt the plant.

When it is good and stressed and the weather is expected to be very bright and warm (summer). Let the sprinkler run free on it and wet it down real good. It will flower briefly in a couple of days. then you have to go through the denial of water again. then repeat. I've not seen this fail in the summer. Flowers will stay on for about a week, but they are really nice for 2 or 3 days depending on the weather