QuestionQUESTION: I have had a Wildcat "Yellow Butterfly" Orchid for two years and it won't bloom. This plant is very sentimental to me. My 23 year old sister was killed in a care accident and I got the orchid at her funeral which had a beautiful bloom. This was her favorite flower. I live in Delaware. I keep the orchid in my bathroom facing south so it gets the afternoon sun. The plant is moist, I water it at least once a week. I have not repotted the plant or done anything to it since I have had it. My sister got a different species at the funeral and hers always blooms and she has never done anything to it either. Can you help me.
ANSWER: Whitney, very sorry to hear about your sister. Her memory lives through that plant so we need to do the best possible job of caring for it. It sounds like your growing location for now is OK since they like the sunlight. Unfortunately, we both have many cloudy days in the winter. When frost danger is over, I recommend a nice outdoor location for summertime growing. It should be a sheltered location but one where sunshine is available for part of the day.
In the interim, you mentioned that you have not repotted the plant. It is likely that the old potting mix is not in very good condition and holds too much moisture and prohibits free flow of air through the potting mix. This condition promotes root rot. At the first sign of new growth, I recommend that you repot the plant. Check out the availability of orchcid potting mixes at a local garden centers. For your plant, the potting mix should contain some tree fern. If you can't locate any, try Roberts Flower Supply at www.orchidmix.com. They are located in Stanton Ohio. They have orchid potting mixes for several types of orchids. You will want their potting mix for Miltonia/Odontoglossum/Oncidiums. They will list the ingedients for each mix on their website. Once you repot the plant in fresh orchid potting mix, you can water it as often as desired as the new mix should permit free drainage. For now, try the "dipstick" method for checking the wetness of your mix. Insert a bamboo stick into the potting mix. When you draw it out it should not feel moist. If it is moist, hold off on the watering until your test reveals a dry stick. Before you repot, wash off the root mass thoroughly and remove any roots that don't seem healthy.
Please feel free to ask any follow-up questions.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Thank you so much for your reply. I have been scared to do anything to the plant for fear I will kill the plant. I would be devastated if it died. I purchased Schultz mix which has aged fir bark, is that ok? Am I suppose to pull the old matted material off the roots, put the roots in the mix and then in the small plastic pot it came in? I don't have a sheltered location outside. I have a very large deck but no shelter, any ideas how I can place my plant out doors and protect the plant? Sorry I have so many question but I just want to do this right.
ANSWER: I understand how scary it is to repot the plant. If, however, you knew what would become of it if it were not repotted, you might be less reluctant to repot it. Schultz mix is fine. Repotting should only be attempted when you have new growth coming. Then, unpot the plant and shake all of the loose bark from the roots and soak the entire plant for an hour in room temperature water. Do this earrly in the day. No need to pull old potting material from the roots as that might damage the roots. Also soak the new potting material that you plan to use in room temperature water for two hours prior to use. See if you can locate a small piece of shade cloth at a garden center. It is graded by the percentage of light that it allows through. 60 percent is best, followeed by 50 percent. If you can't locate any locally you can order it from a number of greenhouses. I have purchased mine from Charley's Greenhouse (google this to find their website). You can order it grommeted which makes it easier to fasten to some supports. Then, you will just need to find a way to support the shad cloth on your deck. Please don't hesitate to ask followup questios if you are uncertain about any aspect of this procedure. That's why I'm here.
Incidentally, the Intergeneric name of your plant is Colmnara and is the result of hybridizing three genera: Miltonia, Odontoglossum, and Oncidium. So you can refer to it as Colmanara Wildcat
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: By new growth do you mean a new stalk spouting from the growth that is already there or do I need to wait for this growth to die and a new brand new growth to begin. Last year after the blooming period new growth started and the other died off. This happened even though the plant did not bloom. By the way I totally forgot about the small porch on the front of my house which faces West and gets the late afternoon hot sun, I hope this will work. When I pull the plant out of the holder no bark shakes off it looks like it is decomposed to mush. I presume when I soak it some of it will fall off.
AnswerI think many of your challenges result from the decomposition of the potting mix. Best time to repot is when new vegetative growth begins from the base of the old growth. After soaking the plant for a couple of hours you will find that much of the old potting mix will be dislodged from the roots. In any event, there is no problem with repotting the plant with any remaining old mix attached to the roots. If the plant is shaded and you have plenty of air movement, such as a good breeze, it should be fine. On real hot days you can mist the plant at the hootest part of day to help cool it as well.
