Hello all, I have a bird of paradise that my boyfriend got me as an anniversary gift. It is by far my favorite plant that I own. For the most part, I know how to care for it; however, I have a few questions. First, how do I know how old it is? I want flowers next season, and I know they have to be at least 5-7 years old. Mine has 8 leaves (I pruned a dead one off a few months back) and what looks like another starting to make its way up. It is about 16" tall (rough guess) and growing in a 10 or 12" pot on a west-to-northwest bay windowsill. It receives indirect light all day, and direct light for about 4 hours. Secondly, I've read a ton of conflicting opinions on fertilizers. Should I use a flower booster, compost, or bloodmeal? Or something else, and how often? I've even read to use bloodmeal monthly on top of a biweekly houseplant fert! Any answers and information is greatly appreciated, it's hard to find definite answers for BOP.
