11 Reasons Why Gerbera Daisy is Not Blooming and How to Promote Flowering

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Gerbera Daisy may fail to bloom due to too little light, incorrect watering, poor feeding, wrong temperatures, low humidity, lack of pruning, poor soil quality, pests infestations, root-rot among other reasons.

Gerbera Daisy is considered to be one of the best flowering plants for the well-lit spaces in the home.

Gerbera Daisy blooms best in bright light with 6-8 hours of direct sunlight, average warmth of 15-25⁰C, moderate humidity of 50-55% and moderately moist, rich, well-drained, all purpose soil coupled with monthly feeding during the growing season. Read more on Gerbera Daisy (Gerbera jamesonii) Indoor Care and Propagation.

If not given the right growing conditions, Gerbera Daisy will not flower. Below are 11 reasons why your Gerbera Daisy is not blooming and how to encourage it to flower.

11 Reasons Gerbera Daisy is Not Flowering with Remedies

1. Too little light

Gerbera Daisy thrives in in bright light with 6-8 hours of direct sunlight. Enough light is necessary for the plant to make food needed for growth and energy.

If the light is too low, the plant will not make adequate food for growth and development which results in reduced growth and lack of blooms.

How to fix it

Position your Gerbera Daisy to infront of a brightly-lit window where it can receive bright light with some morning or late afternoon sunshine. If the natural lighting is not adequate, consider instaling a grow light because sufficient light is critical for flowering. Take a look at these full spectrum grow lights available on Amazon.

2. Lack of pruning

Pruning is an important practice for Gerbera Daisy to keep it neat, discourage pests and diseases and encourage blooming. Left unpruned the flowers will be drastically reduced.

How to fix it

Remove yellow and dead leaves to keep your Gerbera Daisy neat as well as minimize pests and diseases infestations. With a sharp, sterilized pair of pruning scissors, cut the flower stalks at the base when the flower is spent. This will also encourage production on more blooms.

3. Improper feeding

Underfeeding your Gerbera Daisy means that the plant is not getting enough nutrients needed for growth, therefore, the plant will not bloom.

If you overfeed the plant, the roots will die due to fertilizer burn. When the roots die, they cannot take up nutrients and water required for photosynthesis, thus the plant will not flower and may begin to die.

How to fix it

Feed your Gerbera Daisy every 3-4 weeks during the growing season with a phosphorous-rich, water-soluble fertilizer to encourage blooming. Ensure to follow the maufacturer's instructions.

Withhold feeding in the cold season as growth is minimal and feeding at this time can lead to fertilizer burn and death of the plant.

4. Poor quality soil

Poor quality soil that does not drain freely will easily become compacted or soggy which will lead to reduced growth and poor flowering in your Gerbera Daisy.

How to fix it

Grow your Gerbera Daisy in fertile, free-draining soils to prevent it from getting soggy while providing the required nutrients. Most all purpose potting mixes are ideal for this plant.

5. Pest infestations

Gerbera Daisy is prone to scale insects, spidermites, aphids, fungus gnats and caterpillars. These sap-sucking insects will cause the plant to be dehydrated resulting in reduced growth and blooming.

How to fix it

Ensure that your Gerbera Daisy is healthy at all times by providing it with the correct growing conditions. To minimize pest infestations raise the humidity as these pests are attracted to dry growing conditions.

In addition, keep the plant well pruned by removing spent flowers, dead and yellow foliage to reduce infestations by these pesky insects.

Regularly inspect the plant for these pests and take timely control measures. If the plant is infested, isolate it to minimize spread to other plants and treat it with appropriate products like insecticidal soap or neem oil. Be careful to follow the manufacturer's instructions.

6. Root-rot disease

Gerbera Daisy is prone to root-rot disease which is prevalent in soggy soil. The disease is characterized by yellowing, wilting and leaf drop which will result in reduced flowering and eventual death of the plant if not treated.

How to fix it

Carefully, slip the plant out of its pot and inspect the roots. Any brown-black, mushy roots indicate root-rot, trim them off and treat the healthy roots with a copper-based fungicidal solution.

To reduce, re-infection, disinfect the pot with the fungicidal solution or use a fresh pot and repot the plant in fresh well-drained soil. Do not water the plant immediately, keep it dry for about 7 days before you resume watering.

To avoid root-rot in the future, always make sure that the pot has a drainage hole and that the soil is free-draining so that it does not get soggy.

In addition, take care not to overwater the plant especially in the cold season as growth is minimal at this time. As such, the plant does not need a lot of water.

7. Extremely pot-bound plant

Gerbera Daisy flowers best when slightly pot-bound but when it is extremely pot-bound it will wilt, droop and may die due to reduced growth.

This is because the roots have filled the pot and there is very little soil to hold water when you water your plant. If there is too little water in the soil for the plant to take up to the leaves for photosynthesis, the plant cannot make adequate food for growth and blooming.

How to fix it

If you note a lot of roots growing through the drainage hole, repot your Gerbera Daisy into a pot one size larger than the current one or divide it into several sections to propagate new plants.

Repot the Gerbera Daisy at the beginning of the growing season when it has become extremely pot-bound. Ensure that the pot has a drainage hole and that the soil is free-draining. Check out these pots with drainage holes on Amazon.

8. Too little humidity

Gerbera Daisy prefers average room humidity of 50-55%. It has no need for extra humidity. However, if air humidity is very low, it may result in brown leaves, reduced growth and lack of blooms.

How to fix it

To raise humidity, you may grow your Gerbera Daisy in a bathroom and other humid areas in the home. You may also set the pot on a wet pebble tray or use a cool mist humidifier to increase humidity. Read more on how to elevate humidity for houseplants.

9. Extreme temperatures

Gerbera Daisy flourishes in average warmth of 15-25⁰C. Extreme temperatures, oustide this range will cause reduced growth and flowering.

Cold drafts will cause sudden drops in temperature which will lead to reduced growth and by extension reduced blooming. Too hot temperatures will cause the plant to become dehydrated resulting in lack of blooms if not corrected.

How to fix it

Keep your Gerbera Daisy away from cold drafts like windy windows and doors, air conditioning units and other drafty areas to avoid exposing the plant to extremely low temperatures.

Place the plant away from hot surfaces, heating units, hot stoves and other hot places to avoid too high temperatures.

10. Improper watering

Underwatering implies that there is too little moisture in the soil for your Gerbera Daisy. Water is needed by the plant for photosynthesis to make food for growth and blooming.

Overwatering causes the soil to become soggy which leads to the death of the roots due to lack of oxygen. When the roots die, your Gerbera Daisy cannot take up water and therefore it cannot make the food needed for growth and flowering.

How to fix it

Gerbera Daisy requires the soil be kept moderately moist at all times during the growing season. Water the plant liberally during the growing season until water drains out through the drainage hole(s).

Make sure to water your Gerbera Daisy when the top 2-3 inches of soil dry out to keep the soil moderately moist during the growing season.

Reduce watering in the cold season as growth is minimal at this time but do not allow the soil to dry out completely for prolonged periods of time. Learn more on how to water houseplants the correct way.

11. Accumulation of salts & chemicals in the soil

Accumulation of salts and chemicals originating from water and fertilizers will cause the roots of your Gerbera Daisy to die. Therefore, the plant cannot take up water and nutrients to the leaves for food making. This will lead to reduced growth and blooming.

How to fix it

Occasionally, flush out accumulated chemicals (salts) from the soil by running a stream of water through the soil until it comes out through the drainage hole. Allow the stream of water to run for some time and repeat the process several times.

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