Why Are My Yellow Bells Not Producing Flowers?

Yellow bells bear a close resemblance to their relative trumpet vine (above), but the flowers are yellow rather than orange.

"Yellow bells" is one of the common names of Tecoma stans, a member of the Bignnoniaceae family and a close relative of the trumpet vine (Campsis radicans). Healthy yellow bells bear clusters of flowers throughout the growing season. Lack of flowers can be caused by several factors.

Light

The primary reason for poor flowering in many cultivated plants is lack of light. Yellow bells are a desert shrub and require full sun. If yellow bells are growing in a spot that receives less than six hours of direct sunlight per day, flowering will suffer.

Fertilization

All plants need nutrients, but it is possible to have too much of a good thing. Fertilizing when the plants are establishing themselves and feeding container plants regularly is necessary, but too much fertilizer can cause abundant foliage and few flowers.

Deadheading

Flowers exist to produce fertile seed. Deadheading spent yellow bells flowers will prevent the plant from producing seed, forcing the plant to put its energy into making more flowers. Failure to deadhead will result in few or no flowers after the first flush of bloom.

References

• Floridata: Tecoma stans
• Texas A&M University: Aggie Horticulture: Bexar County Cooperative Extension: 'Gold Star' Esperanza