Zygopetalum 'hof' losing flowers fast, pls help!

[Egary]

Hi!

I'm new here but it seems like a great community. I picked up this gorgeous guy at an orchid show when it was still all new bulbs. It flowered beautifully on my desk at work and scented up the whole lab. I've been watering it when the soil feels dry-ish but not bone dry, and I've been spraying the soil and the stalks with miraclegro orchid food mist once a week.

I've had it since April 7th, it flowered maybe around the 10th. The internet said I should have flowers for up to 3months but now they are turning yellow and falling off.

Any advice would be super helpful! Thanks in advance!

[rbarata]

Welcome Egary!
Flowers are not eternal...my Zigo never had flowers lasting for 3 months.

[Roberta]

Welcome!
Yes, force of nature... flowers die, 3 months for a Zygo? Don't think that is reasonable to expect. 4-6 weeks is more reasonable. And with a change in environment from the nursery to your desk, I'd expect to lean to the short side, so yours has done very well.

I hope that it is a plastic pot with drainage, and that you take it out of the decorative pot when you water it. You can put it under the faucet, let water run through the pot, let it drain well before returning to the decorative pot. Once you see new growth starting, repotting probably will be a good idea. If it doesn't have an inner pot with holes, repotting sooner would be good - these like to stay damp but not soggy.

[Dimples]

I feel lucky when my zygo. flowers still look decent after a month.

[Egary]

Thanks everyone for your swift responses!

I was just worried since it's only been 4-6 weeks with blooms, but if that's the average, that's fine.

Good to know I'm not murdering it; it just has less long-lived blooms than a phalaenopsis (those are all I've ever kept before and have had blooms for multiple months)

Yes, the plant is in a plastic pot inside the decorative planter with drains. I have been watering it weekly by taking it out of the outer planter, running water into the inner planter and letting it drain through the bottom before returning it back to the decorative planter on my desk