Can’t get phalaenopsis to spike in Cajun Country(Louisiana)

[LaurenRebecca]

Fairly new orchid enthusiast here. I have 2 phalaenopsis that are grown indoors on the windowsill of my bathroom. I was able to get one to finally spike after 2 years by putting it in an office in my home with no windows and kept the lights off and didn’t water it for about 2 weeks. I have since moved so I no longer have that room available. I’m trying to get another one to spike and I put it in the top of the closet with no lights and didn’t water it for about two weeks but that has failed to make it spike. How can I get the temperature to drop to induce spiking when I live in a state that’s so humid all the time and I’m growing them indoors? I usually water them about every five days

[Dimples]

You don’t need to withhold water. It’s the average drop in temperature for a few weeks that reliably triggers spiking. Do you have a garage?

[Ray]

Dimples is correct.

In order to reliably induce blooming in the majority of phalaenopsis hybrids, they need to be exposed to about 10-14 days of an average growing temperature that is about 10-15 degrees cooler than the average temperature at which they had been growing.

With light and water might induce spiking, it only because they “fear” for their survival when treated that way, and are trying to extend their genetics.

[estación seca]

Here in Phoenix a lot of people put them on the porch when nights are cooling and days are below 100 F / 38C. We bring them in before it gets cold.

[Roberta]

Or try giving more hours of light (a full spectrum LED lamp, 12 hours a day, to supplement what comes in the window) It doesn't want much light intensity, but it may not be getting sufficient duration.

[LaurenRebecca]

The garage won’t work because it’s still in the 80’s during the day and the garage is even hotter than inside. Do they have to have the temperature drop for the entire 10-14 days? I could put them in my garage at night because the temperatures are dropping into the 50’s or 60’s at night but then back up to the 80’s during the day. I keep the house around 70 degrees at all times.

[estación seca]

Can you put them outside in the shade? Complete darkness isn't necessary. Phals. are fine up to about 100 degrees F / 39C so don't worry about 80 F. Your nights are fine with those warm daytime temperatures.

[Ray]

Originally Posted by LaurenRebecca

The garage won’t work because it’s still in the 80’s during the day and the garage is even hotter than inside. Do they have to have the temperature drop for the entire 10-14 days? I could put them in my garage at night because the temperatures are dropping into the 50’s or 60’s at night but then back up to the 80’s during the day. I keep the house around 70 degrees at all times.

Phalaenopsis thrive in high heat and humidity, but must never get direct sunlight in those conditions. Mine saw upper 90’s to low triple digits all summer.

The idea, as I mentioned above, it to expose the plant to a 10-15F decrease in the AVERAGE growing temperature, not to decrease the minimums that much.

If you’ve been growing it at a constant 70 degrees. Your garage scenario - if the high and low are 80 and 60, provides an average of 70, so that will be of no help.

[Mountaineer370]

I don't claim to have the experience of the members who have already responded here, but I'm just offering a different perspective. I've been growing Phals for about ten years now. They live on my kitchen/dining room table, in front of a large south-facing window with sheer curtains that I draw on days when the sun is shining directly in. They stay inside all year round, and my house, like yours, LR, stays at about 70 degrees day and night, all year round.

I can tell you my ten or so Phals rebloom reliably -- now. For the first few years, I was frustrated, but after listening to advice here on the OB, I finally added some supplemental lighting. I didn't think I needed it because of the south-facing window, but it made all the difference in the world! They get light from overhead now, as opposed to just coming in sideways through energy-efficient windows. I leave the lights on for twelve hours a day, every day. I used to do an extra 30 or 60 minutes in the summer, but I stopped because I got tired of having to call customer service twice a year to have them walk me through the steps of changing the timer settings.

As far as watering, I never withhold water. I water when they need it, which means when the roots I can see look silvery and the pot feels significantly lighter than when it was first watered. So I am not letting the medium get completely dry, just approaching dryness. The outside part that I can see is dry, but I'm sure there is still some moisture in the middle of the pot.

I fertilize with a weak solution approximately twice a month. I repot most of them on average every couple of years. Orchiata lasts a very long time, so it's usually when one outgrows a pot.

Again, I'm not disagreeing with the excellent advice you have already received, just offering my own personal experience. FWIW, all of mine are hybrids of the winter-blooming type, not the novelty or summer-blooming types. I tried the latter in the past and they did not like the conditions in my home.

[Dalachin]

My experience with grocery-store type phals is similar to Cheri’s… after I started using supplemental light, even for plants on sunny windowsills, they spike regularly without any noticeable temperature drop. I fertilize them weakly with every watering, year round.