crown of thorns

I recently purchased a crown of thorns and am just overjoyed with the everblooming quality of this plant. However, 3 weeks after having this plant, I noticed that my crown of thorns is still putting out new clusters of 6-8 flowers, but recently there are smaller in size and are white instead of red. I know there are many species of crown of thorns, some of them with white flower & some with red, but is it possible to have both colors on one plant? I am wondering if this more reduced versionof white flowers is a sign that my plant is unhealthy? I water once a week but whatever kind of soil this plant was potted in, the soil feels dry even one day after the watering. I read that crowns of thorns are technically a succulent so do not really need frequent watering. I do pull of yellow leaves at the bottom of the plant but my plant is growing as many if not more new leaves on the top. I am just worried that in the next few weeks my plant will put out smaller and smaller flowers and then stop blooing all together. should i use a bloombooster? attached is a photo contrasting my previous large & beautiful red flowers and the new smaller white blooms.

I don't know if this would affect the flowers or not (although I suspect if the plant is stressed from this it could produce smaller flowers), but if you have leaves that are yellowing and falling off you may be watering too much. In order to tell if it needs water, I would recommend sticking your finger down a couple inches into the pot and see how it feels. The surface of the soil will dry out very quickly, but underneath it can still be quite wet and if it's still wet a couple inches down then you don't want to water it again. It might help to see a shot of the whole plant--I don't see anything that looks unhealthy in this shot but yellowing leaves could be a sign of a problem.

I agree with ecrane. A picture of the whole plant would be helpful. It is also possible that you have two separate plants in the same pot....a stray seedling that took some time getting big enough to bloom. It is a bit hard to tell, but the leaves on the white plant look considerably smaller that the others.

Thanks for your reply ecrane3. I will keep in mind about not overwatering. I read somewhere that crown of thorns are deciduous so I thought it was normal to have a few yellow leaves that I pull off. I also read somewhere that flowering is stressful for plants...so perhaps I need to give it a little help by adding bloombooster. Attached is a picture of the whole plant. any thoughts?

hey the moonhowl...I looked at my plant up and down and it appears to me it is one plant with many branches. there's a small offshoot at the bottom that might be a separate plant but that portion does not flower. The small white flowers and large red ones actually project from the same top location of the branches where smaller new leaves are growing. to explain what i mean, here's another picture. i would appreciate any more feedback on this mystery... don't know if disbudding or deadheading applies to crown of thorns?

Jenny, it is possible that what you have is a Sport, or spontaneous growth. Here is a little info on sports/mutations. It might also just be the result of some sort of damage to that inflor on the plant. i wish I could be of more help.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bud_sport

http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/JARS/v27n2/v27n2-ring.htm

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ep356

Be careful with that thing! The sap is noxious and I guess could kill in large enough doses. we have one that is huge. The "branches" are much smaller than yours there, but that just gives a lot more real estate to them thorns! We have several reds and a couple of pinks. Get the sap in a cut and you'll start to fell some numbness. Or if a thorn gets to deep.
I usually have to suffer through a couple of days of picking splinters from my hands after putting that one out for the summer. Or in for the winter. And that's after putting a THICK quilt around the thing and wearing leather gloves.
Anyway - they don't like change. Ours will drop leaves and blooms if we look at it the wrong way! has it been moved or "messed with" recently?
I wouldn't worry to much. And I certainly wouldn't overdose it with chemicals right off the bat. But just sit back and enjoy it for a few and see what happens.

edit: D'oH! You said you just recently purchased it! Yeah - It's going through some changes! Don't worry. Maybe it likes it's new home so much it's just showing off! trust me. You can't kill it! Cut off a piece, stick it in some good medium and watch it grow!

This message was edited Apr 22, 2010 2:38 AM