Question
QUESTION: Hi,

I bought a phal for my parents about 3 years ago. Although my parents haven't taken good care of it, it managed to at least spike a few times and produced new growth.

I decided to bring it to my apartment to try and make it flower. However, it not only hasn't done so, but it also wont produce any new growth. The temperature is mild enough for it to grow well and I have it re-potted so that it has good drainage and the roots are well placed.

What can I do to make it grow and spike?

ANSWER: Theo, thanks for your question.  You didn't mention the amount of light your plant is receiving. If you have an east window where the plant can get morning sunshine, that should work well.  Usually, increasing the light level is essential for flowering.  If the leaves are dark green, that is a good indication of insufficient light.  The leaves should be a light green in color. Another possibility is that the plant simply isn't mature enough to have the strength to flower.  It sounds as if it has tried to flower but couldn't complete the process.  For now, concentrate on producing strong new growth. Use a balanced plant food (eg 20-20-20) at the rate of 1/2 tsp per gallon of water with each watering.  The plant food plus added light should encourage new growth which is essential to produce a strong plant large enough to flower.

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QUESTION: Wayne,

Thanks for the quick reply! I purchased the plant from an orchid dealer. It was a good sized plant and looked pretty mature when I bought it 3 years before and at that time it had many healthy looking large yellow flowers that lasted for quite a few months.

Then plant may not have had enough light when it was at my parents' place. It was always situated next to a northern or eastern window which seemed ok at the time. I've tried different spots in my apartment and there hasn't been much improvement. One time at my parents' place I saw an off-shoot coming off the main plant, but soon the leaves in the center started to root. Now I just have a dormant main plant with a small off-shoot.

I've changed the location of the plant recently to a spot where it gets a reasonable amount of morning sun until about 10:00am. I've been using the terracycle-orchid-plant-food that comes in a spray bottle. It says it's "worm poop". I've used the stuff before on other orchids and it had great results.



ANSWER: Thanks for the additional info.. It seems one can never have enough details to know what to recommend.  I don't have a lot of confidence in worm droppings as a fertilizer.  Part of the problem is that this is an organic plant food which is urea based.  Urea must be broken down to make nitrogen available to the plant.  The other problem is that it is low on phosphorous which is a bloom booster.  Since your plant is mature we can cut directly to the bloom issue.  Switch to a plant food that has the balance tipped toward phosphorous (high middle number such as 30-60-20).  You can usually find these at a garden center labelled as "bloom boosters".  Secondly, try adding supplemental lighting that you can put on a timer.  Vary day length using the timer so that it is a couple of hours longer than normal day length.  Some phalaenopsis need a temperature drop at night to initiate flowering.  If you have a spot that might provide 55-60 degrees night temperatures this time of year, that might help.

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QUESTION: Wayne,

That is very good to know about the lighting and temp. I guess I could leave it on a window sill facing the east and see how that works, but I live in NY and the winters here are unforgiving. I'm a little worried that the window sill might be too cold. Any other place just wont provide that change from warm day temp to cool night temps. How about watering? I read that phals should be watered less in the winter time.

I also have another orchid that I'm trying to revive as well. It's a dendrobium that I bought at Trader Joe's in September. It bloomed for 3 months and then the lower leaves started to turn yellow and fell off until there was only the two top leaves left. It hasn't recovered since. What can I do to revive it and help it bloom?

So this terracycle stuff says that it has no urea in big letters on the bottle and that it's specifically meant for orchids. I've been using it on past phals and it brought out nice blooms. However, I'll look around for a good plant shop and see if they have what you recommended.  

Answer
With regard to locaction for the phalaenopsis, I would try to check the nighttime temperature by the pot.  It's Ok down to 50 degrees.  Yes, try to grow it on the drier side as there cold, wet conditions could cause root damage.  On especially cold, cloudy days, you could move the plant way from the window and move it back when conditions improve.

I'm not familiar with terracycle but have seen worm casings marketed for orchids.  The manufacturer of terracycle must put these through a chemical process to speed up the chemical breakdown of ures.

Dendrobiums are much more difficult to grow.  First off, dendrobiums generally come in two groups: warm growers and cool growers.  Cool growers produce flowers directly from the cane, while warm growers produce flowers from a spike that originates near the top of the cane.  Most dendrobiums, however, have an extended rest period and are deciduous. Many first-time growers kill the plant by watering it during the rest period so, when the leaves start to fall, suspend watering and do not restart it until you see new growth.  If the canes begin to shrivel during the rest period, you may mist the plant.  Most dendrobiums like much more light than phalaenopsis to bloom so, as soon as temperatures remain well above freezing you might consider moving it outside for part or all of the day in a semi-shaded location.  It likes sunshine but that should be introduced slowly to avoid sunburn and allow the plant to adapt to the higher light conditions.  When new growth starts, feed the plant with every watering as they are heavy feeders when in growth.