Purpurata blooms not completely out of sheath

[dwirajaya]

This is the first time my purpurata blooms, but sadly it opens before completely out of sheath.

Is this common? Next time, should I do anything to prevent it, or should I just accept it as an act of nature?

Thank you.

[SouthPark]

That's should be fine. Just ------ ultra carefully ------ split the sheath in half ----- sort of like peeling/prying the two sides of a snow-pea pod in half.

And the flower should then be able to fully open up.

Stuck in the sheath like that is probably not typical. But ----- when growing in the home environment ----- us growers have the power to intervene ----- to peel that sheath away ----- and then see what happens.

[rbarata]

Maybe the flower peduncle is twisted inside the sheath. Put the sheath against a strong light source so that you can see what's inside.

[Shadeflower]

I think this kind of behavior happens more with immature plants but as they get bigger this should stop happening. It's still something I am figuring out myself but just like an orchid can recover from producing crinkly leaves I'm sure it will get better next time with the flower.
I would suggest you thoroughly inspects the orchid for pests.
Most times if an orchid grows a bit stunted it's down to pests nibbling on it sucking all its energy. They are remarkably good at hiding their tracks until you notice and a lot of damage has been done so just in case, make sure it is pest free.

[isurus79]

Originally Posted by Shadeflower

I think this kind of behavior happens more with immature plants but as they get bigger this should stop happening. It's still something I am figuring out myself but just like an orchid can recover from producing crinkly leaves I'm sure it will get better next time with the flower.

My thoughts as well.

dwirajaya - Is this a first bloom plant?

[SouthPark]

Originally Posted by dwirajaya

but sadly it opens before completely out of sheath.

Don't worry. It's not sad at all - because ------ if you just carefully peel the green portions of the sheath away, then your flower will most likely open up, and then you can take pics of it, and enjoy the opening.

[JScott]

When my RLC Williette Wong 'The Best' was still young, it used to do this consistently. I began just cutting off about the top half of the sheath as soon as the growths were mature, and once I started doing that, the blooms started coming out nicely.

However as others have said, I think this is a young plant problem. I no longer have to do this, and the blooms emerge fully from the sheath on tall, strong stems.

[SouthPark]

dwira ----- just to be clear about it ....... notice how your flower is currently trapped by the sheath? It's not a problem. All you have to do is to get the flower out of its trap (which is the sheath). So ----- right now, all you need to do is to carefully split the sheath apart - without damaging the flower (ie. without ripping bits off the flower). So once the sheath is removed ------ carefully ------ then the flower is just going to open up normally. Situation under control.

[dwirajaya]

Thank you all my friends.

Yes, it is its first bloom.

I will peel the sheath a bit and look for pests, as you suggest. Hopefully, next time it will get better, as the plant matures.

Again thank you all. I appreciate very much your thoughs on this.

[rbarata]

Tell us what you found inside the sheath as soon as you peel it.
Thanks