I’ve had this little plant for more than a year. When it was given to my daughter as a gift, it was blooming nicely and stayed that way for several months. Then the blossoms died, and fell off. I let it set for a while, then noticed it was literally climbing out of its small pot, so I repotted it and … it looks exactly the same as it did a year ago.
I looked up how to care for orchids. It said water sparingly, which I have done. I give it diffused sunlight. Nothing. I put it above the sink for the humidity as suggested. Nothing. Then I moved it to the bathroom, to replicate its jungle home. Nothing. The only movement I’ve seen is a little green shoot, which doesn’t impress me.
Anyone with experience in getting this babies to bloom?
It’s a phalaenopsis (but you probably already knew that). The new “green shoot” at the bottom looks to be a new root (which is a good thing - happy phals will have lots of roots in midair or coming out of the pot). If it’s getting enough light (indirect/diffuse/morning light), the other keys to blooming are that it should not get light at night (from streetlights/nightlights) and that there should ideally be a 15 degree (F) difference between day and night temperature. It wouldn’t hurt to cut off the old bloom spike (sometimes they will rebloom from an old spike, but there are fewer flowers than the first time, and if it hasn’t done so by now, it won’t). Even if you do all of this, there’s no guarantee that it will bloom soon or reliably - some of my phals bloom well, while others, grown right next to them, are more erratic.
What are the plant’s conditions? I have an orchid in my windowsill next to me right now at work. It has 6 gorgeous white blooms with purple centers. People always ask me how I keep it in bloom.
That stick you have to the side? Clip it to the stem that is upright. That will help support its growth. Water it at least once a week, and make sure the water has the ability to drain. If it is too moist it won’t grow. Give it plant fertilizer at the minimum recommended dose. Make sure it gets about half a day’s sunlight. More is fine, less is limiting. I’ll try to add a pic before I go to lunch.
Did you repot it in orchid bark? Phalanopsis grow in trees, in decayed bark and debris. They will not do well in potting soil. Sometimes they are sold in moss, which isn’t the best for it. They also like a different fertilizer than houseplants.
Mine bloom seasonally, and do best when I left them alone. The best blooming was achieved in front of a window, left cracked open all year long, and I believe they reacted well to the changing seasons.
You may PM me if you would like.
A main question I had was whether to cut off the stick or not. I’ll try that. As for the bark, no, I just put it in potting soil, thinking if I let it get dry and unappealing (to most plants) the orchid would like it just fine. I didn’t imagine something that clung to trees would be all that fussy.
Right now it’s getting pretty strong sunlight for several hours in the afternoon, but filtered through the glass blocks in my bathroom. You can see a bit of them in the far left of the photo. At night I leave a light on in the bathroom, but dimmed, maybe that’s the problem? No place in my house is pitch dark at any time. Maybe an unused bedroom upstairs, or closet.
I used to mist some plants I had way back when I was a preteen. I can’t remember what they were but I remember the plant mister I had was very cute, which was the most important thing when I was 11. Would misting an orchid help?
It will die in potting soil. The little yellow/green bud at the base is a new root. They like some of them out of the planting medium. Misting the roots is good for them, but the roots in the soil will rot. If you take it out of the pot, you will see that the roots are beginning to decay.
I think light through glass blocks would be good.
If you cut off the stick, which is a bloom stem, you may get it to bloom again if you leave some the tiny leafy things on the bloom stem. They sometimes grow a new bloom stem when you cut the old one back a little.
Thanks for posting this, Ellen Cherry. My little sad orchid which hasn’t bloomed in well over a year is starting to show new growth. Good info in this thread.
I might be excoriated for this, but… I compost them after they stop blooming. I had over 40 at one point, trying to get them to re-spike, and I finally said, these things cost 15 bucks. If I want a blooming orchid, I will buy one. I have freed myself from the tyranny of the orchid!
Everyone says how delicate they are. What bull. You can’t kill them things! But getting them to re-spike, that is a different story.
Two women came to King Solomon, claiming that a lost child was theirs. Solomon ordered that the kid be cut in half, and half given to each women. One woman agreed, the other said she would give the kid up. Solomon told his gendarmes to give the kid to the one who gave him up, that being the true Mother.
So whacking the orchid and composting it puts up you on the side of the wanna-be Mother.
Kinda-sorta-maybe.
:rolleyes:
