blooms pulled off, what to do next?

[ahwilli8]

My husband bought me an orchid for Valentine's Day. Today my three year old pulled the flowers off the orchid. What can I do for the plant? How can I get it back blooming as soon as possible? I'm not sure what type of orchid it is. He bought it at Wegman's. I'd like to keep it alive. It was very pretty.

[charlesf6]

Not much that you can do. Just take care of the plant normally and it will take care of the future blooming processing.

[neophyte]

First off, welcome to the forum! Your orchid likely blooms once per year (probably during late winter/early spring), so figuring out the needs of your orchids in order to keep it alive will ensure that you can enjoy its blooms next year. You may need to post a certain number of times before you can upload photos (this was a forum rule and I'm not sure if it still applies), but uploading a picture will help us figure out what kind of orchid it is and what requirements it has.

[charlesf6]

Of course you can always have hubby purchase you another one that's in bloom in the meantime.

[JScott]

If your plant is a Phalaenopsis, which if it came from Walmart, it probably is, you can cut the stem just below where the first bloom was, and sometimes the flower spike with grow a new branch with new blooms from one of the nodes lower on the stem. It that doesn't happen, you will probably have to wait a year. Read up on Phalaenopsis culture. Many of them only bloom once a year, but I have a few that bloom twice a year. But there's really nothing you can do to force it to bloom before it is ready. You just have to wait. Google Phalaenopsis to confirm that that is actually what kind you have. Or upload a picture here and we can tell you.

[ahwilli8]

Thank you I appreciate the help. Should I cut it back now? I know that's what is supposed to happen when they fall off on their own.

Shared album - Allison Harkey - Google Photos

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by ahwilli8

Thank you I appreciate the help. Should I cut it back now? I know that's what is supposed to happen when they fall off on their own.

Shared album - Allison Harkey - Google Photos

Or, you could just leave the spike... and let the plant decide if and where to create a new branch, do the cutting after it happens. If the spike dies back (gets brown and crispy) then you know to cut it. This would probably also be a good time to repot it into a pot with good drainage (get it out of that decorative pot, which will make it stay much too wet) Spahgnum moss (which is what it is in now) can be tricky to get the watering right, orchid bark is more forgiving. When removing the old moss, don't be too aggressive -take what comes off easily, but if there's a bit left, you don't want to damage roots getting it off. (You can do this leaving the spike, Phals don't particularly care, they can even be repotted in bloom)

[Arizona Jeanie]

And hurrah for a kid who loves flowers!

[ahwilli8]

Originally Posted by Arizona Jeanie

And hurrah for a kid who loves flowers!

That's a good way to look at it. I was pretty disappointed when it happened but I like your perspective better.

[mofms1]

Often when Orchids come from the normal stores, they are sold with a sponge or moss plug in the middle of the roots. This can be dangerous (especially with someone new to orchids) because as stated above, the watering can be tricky. I would suggest unpotting the plant, cleaning off the roots and re-potting it in orchid bark in a well draining pot. You can find specific orchid pots, usually they are pretty glazed pots with holes all over, in garden centers at Walmart or Home Depot. Those are really good pots for starters because they make it hard ot over water and usually there's enough room for growth.