Question
QUESTION: Hi Wayne King,

Now my dendrobium are about to flower. But, the flower spikes are carrying lesser buds compared to the last year when I bought them.
Why does it occur? Any problem with my dendro.  They do have passed resting period already.

Another question is about my Vanda which also starts to shoot out flower spike. I can see these spike are about to shoot out from the stem.  But, it still remain in the same place and never get bigger& stop and stuck at the original place. Last two month also happened the same thing. They never get bigger as a small point stuck at the stem. I was expecting to get them bigger and to bloom
but nothing happen at all.

So, would you explain to me why these two problems have happened?

Thanks in advance,
Nwe Lay

ANSWER: A couple of questions for you.  Does the dendrobium bloom on old canes or the newly formed canes?  If the latter, are the new canes as large or larger than the previous cane?  Are you growing the dendrobium in the same location as last year?  Where is it now?

It does often take a long time for Vanda flower spikes to elongate.  Again what are the conditions under which you have the vanda, particularrly with regard to temperature and humidity?

Forgive me if you have previously ansered one or more of these questions but the memory is not what it used to be.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Wayne King,

Thanks for your reply.

I have two dendro pots about to bloom now one is from old cane and the other one is from new cane which is larger than its parent. Both I bought last year end and this is first time flowering for me since I bought.

For Vanda, it is getting required temperature, light(from (9:30 am to 3:30 pm daily) & humidity.

So,could you please tell me the problem associated with these plants flowering issues?

Thanks in advance,
Nwe Lay

Answer
Thanks for the additional information.  Most likely, the conditions under which you are flowering these plants are different in one or more respects from the conditions under which they were previously brought into bud and flowered.  As far as flowering is concerned, there are many variables involved.  First there is the factor of adapting to different growing conditions than these plants previously experienced. If this is the case, then, each subsequent year you grow the plants under your conditions, may yield improved results.  I have also observed, however, that plants kept under the same apparent conditions do not bloom consistently well each year. A slight change in environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity, light, etc at a critical time in bud formation can affect the time of flowering and size and number of flowers.  While we may not be sensitive to this (or aware of it) compared to the previous year, it can greatly influence flowering from one year to the next.  Secondly, some dendrobiums, as well as vandas, grow and open their buds very slowly (several months for some plants).  Remember too that each plant is genetically different not only from one type of plant to another, but even amonst plant of the same type.  I have several vandaceous plants hanging within sevral feet of one  another.  Some have started root tip growth and new root growth-- others have not.  Some will bloom by the end of the summer, others will not bloom until November or later.

With the vandaceous plants, I think a good dunking each morning is beneficial-- just keep the buds and/or flowers from getting wet.  Keep records on your plants noting the date when certain activities begin and end for each plant.  This will provide a profile of each plant for future reference (also note generally the environmental conditions).