How to tell when the night-blooming cereus blooms

State before flowering

The flower stem is hooked, with the top of the bud facing upwards.

When it appears in this state, it means it is about to bloom. If you pay attention to it after 9 o'clock in the evening, you can see the legendary "flash in the pan".

Why do they only bloom at night?

Under normal circumstances, the flowering period of Epiphyllum is at night, and the flowering seen during the day is artificial. Epiphyllum comes from the deserts in tropical regions. The environment in the desert is dry and the temperature is high. The long-term survival has made Epiphyllum resistant to heat and drought. Because the temperature is higher during the day, the amount of water evaporates more, and without sufficient water, flowers cannot bloom. However, at night, the temperature will drop and the amount of water evaporation will decrease. This is the best time to bloom.

Optimal conditions

The reason why Epiphyllum is short-lived is that it has high temperature requirements for flowering. When the temperature is between 20 and 26 degrees and the air humidity is above 80%, the humidity at night is higher than that during the day, and the temperature is lower than that during the day. After the early morning, the temperature gets lower and lower, and the flowers will slowly wither. That's why it's called a "one-time event", it only lasts for a few hours.