Cape Honeysuckle blooming in December in Phoenix, Arizona

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If you have Cape Honeysuckle and are in the Phoenix, Arizona area, it should be blooming in December. That's part of what makes it such a great plant for here, it doesn't mind the heat of the summer, and it blooms all winter.

If yours isn't blooming, chances are that you are too neat a gardener. That is, you may have cut off all of the potential blooms by trying to keep the plant looking neat and tidy. And yes, you can keep Cape Honeysuckle in a compact shape by trimming, but it won't bloom. So here's what you should do:

• Put away the shears, or the power trimmer, and leave the plant alone a bit. Yes, it will start to get a little shaggy, but that's just what the plants needs to be able to bloom.

• Get out there and trim away the shaggy parts that are not blooms. Look at them, and snip them off. After you've looked a bit you will be able to recognize just plain leaves from a flower bud.

Cape Honeysuckle in bloom.
I got a little bit too neat with the trimming of my Cape Honeysuckle in the backyard, and neglected the one in the courtyard, and guess which one is blooming? Yep, the more shaggy one. And it nothing to do with water, or fertilizer, or anything else. It just had to do with leaving the plant alone.

A good plant for the lazy gardener!

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