None of my orchids will flower and one is dying.

[ambersartain]

Hi. I have an Epi. Mabel Kanda 'Miyao' x Epi. Randianum, a Blc. Williette Wong 'The Best' and a generic dendrobium from Wal-Mart. And also a den. from Kroger that said Burana Pink on it. That's the dying one. The other three are mine, and they look pretty healthy except for last summer's sunburn. It's just that they will not bloom. I'm growing my three in s/h culture, and I had just repotted them, and I know it's backwards, but after I repotted them, they've all started to grow new growths. I used rooting hormone when I repotted. I don't know if that has anything to do with it. They seem okay, but like most people who grow orchids do, I want them to do better than okay, and since I've never seen two of them bloom, I'd like to see that too. They had been getting water most of the time and getting way too much food I found out when I did feed them. Then came the repotting and the rooting hormone. Now I've started giving them a tsp of MSU fertilizer/gallon of water. I've only done that once so far. Light is probably a problem and so is humidity. I keep them under shop light with plant bulbs in it. It's all I can afford right now. They're by a window, but it is pretty dim. Also, the air in the house is usually pretty dry. I don't really know a very good way to bring the humidity up and don't want to mess things up in the house if I do it too much.
Then, there's my sisters dend. which I offered to take care of, and boy did I. It was in some kind of palm stuff and it looked like the roots were getting too wet so I decided to repot it and I'm really bad at wanting things perfectly clean and so I tried to get all the palm stuff off and when I did, so came most of the roots. I have it potted in fresh fir bark and a clay orchid pot now. I've been giving it rooting hormone and last time I watered I went ahead and fed it with the rest of them thinking it might help. And the dry air has to be killing it too. Esp. with no roots. And the leaves keep turning yellow and falling off. Is there any way to save it?

[grasshopper]

I'm pretty new to orchids myself, so I don't think I'll be much help in saving your sister's dend., but I can offer some advice on raising your humidity. I have a Vicks vapo-steam humidifier in the room where I have my orchids and it makes a huge difference in the humidity levels. I live in Dallas, TX, so humidity isn't really a huge problem for me in the summer, but in the winter it drops into the 30% range in my orchid room (which is my guest bedroom). With the humidifier, I can raise the level to about 55-60%, which is my goal. To keep the room from getting mildewy, I run the ceiling fan on medium speed at all times just to keep the air moving.

This isn't a high-tech, high cost humidifier either. I think I got it at Bed, Bath and Beyond for about $30-40.

Hopefully someone else will be able to help you regarding blooms. My guess is more light. Is the window an east or south facing window?

[trdyl]

Hello Amber. I have not worked with denbrobiums but I can help you with nonbloom Cattleyas and Encyclias. Can you discribe your shop light to me as in bulb wattage and number of bulbs? Also have they ever bloomed before? I am trying to find out if they are seedlings or mature plants. Also what size pot where they in before you put them into S/H?

[Claire25]

Hi Amber,
A Dendrobium was the very first orchid I grew, and 11 years later I still find room for these in my collection (in fact I have one in bloom right now). The key to Dendrobiums is LIGHT and lots of it. I got my first Dendrobium to bloom by setting it on a picnic table in my backyard where it got full sun for 6 or 7 hours a day...I didn't know anything about orchids back then, and I figured that since it sorta looked like a succulent/cactus I should treat it like one. Well, I wouldn't advise you to try that (in fact you can't right now, unless you're in the Southern hemisphere, it being winter and all ) but my point is that you are going to need really high light levels to bloom Dendros, as well as the two other Cattleya-types you have.

I place all my Dendros and Catts outside for the summer where they get full sun up to about 1 p.m., and in the winter they get very high light on sunny south-facing windowsills, where they bloom alongside the cactus. If you can't provide this level of light, they will not bloom.

Regarding your sister's Dendro, low air humidity+fir bark+clay pot = one seriously dried out plant! You need to get it out of that clay pot and pot it in a non-porous pot (plastic) with damp sphagnum moss around whatever remains of its roots, not ever letting the moss dry completely out. If there are no roots to speak of, or if only a few, you should also upend a clear plastic bag over the top of the plant to reduce water loss from the leaves (it's like a mini-greenhouse in there...make sure air can escape at the bottom and that you keep it out of direct sun so that you don't cook your plant). This technique is called "sphag-n-bag" and I've saved my share of rootless orchids that way...

Good luck with your 'chids...and BTW how long have you had them? Many only bloom once or twice per year and you'll be unlikely to force them to bloom if it's not their time.

Claire
PS I don't know much about s/h culture, but if I were you I'd stop giving any fertilizer right now. It sounds like your plants are stressed from a lack of humidity, and anyway this time of year is not a real active time for their growth (especially with low light levels). The fertilizer that they are therefore not using will remain in the pots until they send out new roots, which may burn if there is too much of it lingering there.

[ambersartain]

As far as the vaporizer, I have one and I was using it for a while until I realized it was getting really hot underneath it and I got scared to use it anymore because I'm gone most of the day. I'm wondering if humidity trays might help.
The shop light is just one I got from Lowe's a while back and it has an old full-spectrum bulb, which probably needs replacing, and one I just got last month that said it was for house plants and aquariums. I'm not home so I can't say for sure, but let me try too look it up...Okay, the plant light is 40 watts, T12. The other one, since I've had it a while now, I'm not sure, but it used to provide full-spectrum lighting for my bird. I know it used to light the heck out of my room, I think it was called a daylight bulb because I remember the name sure seemed to fit. Probably needs to be replaced now. So, and yes, you can laugh, two 48" T12 bulbs on an old shop light. They used to be just an inch of two away from the tallest plant, but I moved it up to make room for my sister's, until I figured out it probably didn't need to be under the light like that.
As for my sister's orchid, it only has two leaves left, so I think it's making its own effort to stop losing water from its leaves. A couple days ago I soaked some spagnum moss and put it on top of the bark because I noticed the top of the bark would dry out really fast and I thought maybe it might raise the humidity for the rest of the plant, although it's a really tall plant, so I don't know if it really helps that high up. I haven't managed to find a bag big enough to fit over it, but I'm a little scared to try it because I put an oncidium in a bag once trying to save it, but I made the mistake of closing off the bag, so yeah, it kind of molded. Stupid me, should have just left it in the palm stuff. I'm just very paranoid about root rot because I used to be the type (probably still am) to try to save orchids from chain stores. I at least should've waited until I saw new growth. I'll probably just buy her another one when I get the chance. Can anyone recommend somewhere to buy one from?
Oh, and I'd like to post some pictures but I'm have trouble getting them small enough to post. Once the file size is as small as is specified, you just can't get much detail out of it. Maybe I could post them somewhere else and link them into here? They're really not bad looking. They all have new growths on them right now. The epi. has three. Though it is kind of disturbing to look back at old pictures and see they haven't really grown. Last summer I put them out and they got sunburn. Any advice on how and when I should put them out next summer to avoid this? I live in northeast Mississippi. The window is west facing. That is probably the worst? Right? There is also a south facing window, but the neighbors house shadows it alot of the time, and also, my bed is in front of it. Also, last time I put them out, they were on the ground, and somehow managed to get alot of dirt in the medium. I think the earthworms liked it inside there or something. I'm not really sure of a good place to put them outside. Sorry if I'm rambling.
Oh, and I've had the epi. and cattleya about 2 years maybe and the dend. I've had for probably about 5 so I'm guessing they're mature. The epi. and cat. I got from lowe's in bags, I think bare root. They've never flowered. The epi. does really well considering I don't really know what I'm doing, the cat. seems more picky. The dend., well, the more recent two were a gift from my current boyfriend and the dend from a previous boyfriend. It was from Wal-mart and was in flower when we got it. It also didn't have a tag so I have no idea what species it is. It has purple flowers. I've only seen it flower the once though. If I need lights, can somebody recommend some good yet economical ones that can hang from the ceiling? And suggestions on the humidity problem? Maybe I should measure and make sure it's a problem. What would you suggest? Oh, and the lights are on a timer. What should the timer be set for?
Thanks.

[ambersartain]

Also, here a like to my facebook photos of the orchids:
Login | Facebook
The first pictures are older, the newer ones are towards the bottom of the page and on the second page.

[Claire25]

Hmmm...sounds like trying to supplement the natural light from the windows is definitely necessary for you. You would probably have success growing and blooming your orchids year round with a metal halide light system suspended from the ceiling--this kind of system puts out so much light it's actually used by quite another kind of indoor gardener. I used to have one suspended from my ceiling when I still lived with my folks--my Cattleyas bloomed under it, so I'm guessing your Dendros would, too. You WILL need a good humidifier if you go this route...I had an ultrasonic type that did the trick (too well, in fact--when I'd come home from school in the afternoon and open my door, a fog bank would roll out into the hall). You're looking at around $100-$150 bucks for one of these, maybe cheaper if used...btw the bulb is the expensive part!

As for avoiding sunburn on plants grown outside, understand that what seems "shady" to our eyes accustomed to the near-cave-like darkness of our homes is actually fairly bright light. You will need to GRADUALLY let your plants adjust to being outdoors well before they get any direct sun at all. I generally put all my orchids outdoors in early May (unless it's unusually chilly here in MD) and after a couple weeks I start "dosing" them with ever-lengthening periods of sun. By June 21 the "sun-lovers" are usually hardened off to the bright sun through noon-time, at least. (And remember, these are plants that are already getting really bright conditions all winter long on my windowsills--you will need to be even more careful). It's best to watch the plants closely the first day (or more!) that they are getting direct sun...move them immediately into the shade if their leaves become hot to the touch or begin to burn. This only works if you can be home all day...leaving the plants in the sun and then going to work means you will find some crispy critters when you return.

Just keep in mind that even a "shady" spot outdoors (under a tree, say) is likely much brighter than the light you're currently providing. And to avoid the earthworm/creepy crawly problem, either place your pots on raised objects (bricks work well) or use special pot hangers sold for this purpose in orchid supply stores (they are cheap, and it's really cool to have all your plants hanging from the lower branches of a backyard tree and rocking in the breeze!)
Claire

[trdyl]

Another light fixture to concider is a 4 Blub 48" High Output T5 setup. I think they are in the $140-250 price range. They do not use as much electricity to run and do not produce as much heat as the metal halide lamps. You should check out First Rays Orchids website. They are the least expensive I have seen.

https://www.firstrays.com/cgi/cart/c...exact_match=on

[ambersartain]

I think I'll try to talk my boyfriend into it when we get more money. The T5 sounds good. Would I need to adjust them to it somehow? How high above them would I need to put it? Also, would they bloom that way? And stay in good health? If so, I think I'd rather keep them indoors.
Claire, what kind of humidifier was it exactly? That sounds awesome. Did it make your room start to mildew or anything though? Would I have to find some way to waterproof it or just turn the humidifier down?
Oh, and did you guys get a chance to look at them? I'm kind of proud of them, even if they're not doing the best. I like my orchids. Do they really look that bad? And since they're getting new growths, shouldn't I be fertilizing them? But the one that's doing badly, just plain water for it though? Oh, and I finally gave in and put a wal-mart bag over the top of it. Will that work?
And what time should I set my timer to? I used to set it with sunrise and sunset, but then I decided to set it for 12 hours a day. And would it be different for this light and the T5s?

[mojomick]

Light....Light....Light. There can be many reasons an orchid doesn't bloom but the first one to look for is light. You can borrow a light meter from a friend or use a camera with a light meter to check your plants. There is lots of information on the net about the light levels needed for certain orchids. Also, I would strongly urge you to use humidity trays. You can get some cheap black plastic seed trays (ones with no holes) put in some gravel and add water. The use of a fan is needed to keep the orchids happy as well. I used to use humidifiers inthe house but found that the fan and humidity tray were sufficient. Good luck and Happy growing..