*I am looking for advice on how to help my potted Lil Kim Lilacs reach full bloom - Will they ever bloom in a pot? - How much sunlight do they need? - How much lime should I incorporate into the soil? 1. The bush is in a pot, not in the ground. 2. I have had it since March/April 2012. I purchased it from Sam's Nursery in Langley on Fraser Hwy (a wonderful place!). At the time of purchase it was blooming. 3. In 2013 it didn't bloom at all and I decided it was because I had overly fertilized it and so it produced lovely leaves but no blossoms at all. 4. This Spring, 2014, I was careful to not over-fertilize and applied lime to it in the middle of April. 5. It has produced the beginnings of blossoms all over (great! as it didn't do this last year), but has not gone further. It has remained relatively the same for 2 weeks (more blossoms have formed, but only to the stage pictured below). 6. I recently re-located them on the patio in the hopes that they receive more sunlight. I face North and there is a building beside me creating shade (They probably get 3-5 hours of sun a day). Thank you for any help!
From my experience, lack of sunshine is the root cause of your lovely lilac not blooming. I had this same thing occur. It is a lovely Lilac and I was looking at one just today in the nursery as I am in a new place, but I had one from years ago that was in full bloom when I bought it, I repotted it into a much larger container, fertilized it as required. Fast forward to the following spring - no blooms. It never bloomed again in ten years, but then, a few years ago some trees/hedging were removed by the landlord which increased the sunlight in that area by several hours per day, it has bloomed magnificently according to the current tenant whom I left this lilac in care of. I hope you have a west exposed location for it and it will thrive. Good luck.
