What Are the Causes of Bud Drop in a Goldfish Plant?

Temperature

• Native to the tropics, goldfish plants like warm temperatures. They prefer daytime temperatures in the 80s and nighttime temperatures in the 60s Fahrenheit. Goldfish plants can and will drop their flower buds if exposed to lower-than-normal temperatures. Sudden changes in temperature or cold drafts from exterior doorways can also cause tropical flowering plants to drop their flower buds.

Watering

• Goldfish plants prefer growing in rich soil kept evenly moist, similar to the soil in their native tropical jungles. Goldfish plants drop their flower buds when they receive too little or too much moisture when their flower buds are forming. Water your goldfish plant when the soil’s surface feels dry to the touch. Keep the soil evenly moist but not saturated. Proper watering helps your goldfish plant hold onto its flower buds until they open.

Light

• Indigenous to the South American jungles, goldfish plants grow in the understory, shaded from the hot tropical sun by the dense canopy of trees. Put your goldfish plant in a south-facing window with a sheer curtain between the glass and the plant, or in an east-facing window with no curtain. During frost-free weather, move it outdoors to a shady spot protected from high winds. Too much sunlight, and the flower buds may shrivel and fade. Too little light, and they may never develop enough to open. In either case, the unopened buds may eventually fall off.

Insects

• Thrips (Thrips spp.) are common goldfish plant pests. They lay their eggs inside the large, unopened flower buds. The buds turn an off-color. The buds may or may not open, only to fall off the plant at the slightest touch. Sometimes, the buds fall off before opening or turning color. Treat a thrips infestation by spraying the affected plants with insecticide three to six times, five to seven days apart. Apply the spray by aiming the nozzle at the top of the plant, allowing the insecticide to fall onto the unopened buds. Promptly gather up and discard any fallen buds.