Am I Taking Good Care Of My Caper Bush?

Did you planted your Caper bush in direct sunlight?

Did you planted your Caper Bush in well-drained soil?

Did you provide a warm and dry environment for your Caper bush?

Did you water young bushes regularly, but less often when they became established?

Do you feed your Caper bush frequently?

Do you cut back your Caper bushes hard, to a couple of inches from ground level in winter or early spring?

Do you harvest only tight buds that are dark green?

Do you keep your Caper bush free of pests and diseases?

Caper bushes need plenty of direct sunlight to thrive. If you have a shady garden, you'll need to move your Caper bush to a sunnier place.

Caper bushes do well in poor quality rocky, sandy or gravelly soil types. It's essential, however, that the site is well-drained.

Caper bushes are native to regions with an arid climate. They will thrive in locations where they can experience dry heat. You're not going to see successful growth in cold or humid regions. In very hot regions, the plant can remain evergreen, but they will lose their leaves if temperatures drop significantly in winter. If you experience hot summers but chillier winters, you could also keep your bush in a suitably sized container and bring it indoors when the temperatures drop.

Drought-tolerant Caper bushes have a deep root system and foliage that finds and retain moisture easily. When you first plant them, they will need more frequent watering to allow them to establish. After this, minimal watering will be needed. It's vital to ensure they don't get too much moisture. You can kill off Caper Bushes if they're left in standing water.

An established Caper bush can thrive in highly infertile soil and won't need additional feeding. For the first couple of years, while the plant is still young, feeding a weak, slow-release fertilizer solution a few times through the spring and summer could be beneficial.

Hard pruning your Caper bush in the winter will encourage healthy new blooms the following year and will help the shrub retain a tidy shape. For new, young plants, you shouldn't prune them during the first several years while they're establishing.

Make sure the buds are tight and that they are a dark green shade. They should be at least a 1/4 inch wide. Picking them in the morning is best as they start to open as the day gets hotter.

Good job! You are taking good care of your Caper bush.

Caper bushes are susceptible to several fungal diseases and many insect pests. It would be wise to check the plant for symptoms of either disease or pests often and to call an expert to help you control them if needed.