New Growth

[Becca]

Originally Posted by scy

I took your advice and no more fuzz! I do keep it covered at night since the temperature drops to around 50 F, but it's on a heating pad, so that does help.

I took the larger dendrobium (in first post) to the sink to water and noticed as I was turning it to evenly water, that there was another growth on the back side! *cheers* I saw 2 more dormant eyes that will probably open up in the future. I didn't know that so many canes can develop around the same time frame. I thought maybe 1 or 2.

Just wanted to clarify this as I was not sure:
1. Will it only flower through the top of the cane once the cane is developed and mature? How long does this process take?

2. Once it is done flowering, how do I properly prune it? Do I just let the individual flowers drop on their own and leave everything else in tact or cut the whole stalk up to the top most leaf?

2a. If I do have to cut the whole stalk up to the top most leaf, does this mean that every year (during growth season), it will grow a new cane and then bloom again from the new one, leaving the last season's cane to be used for backup reserves?

Thanks in advance for helping clarify things.

Susan

Hi Susan! I'll try and answer your questions:

1.Will it only flower through the top of the cane once the cane is developed and mature? How long does this process take?

Answer: Yes, this particular type of dendrobium flowers from the top of the cane once it has matured. Usually this takes about a year.

2. Once it is done flowering, how do I properly prune it? Do I just let the individual flowers drop on their own and leave everything else in tact or cut the whole stalk up to the top most leaf?

Answer: Once it is finished flowering you can wait until the flowers drop and cut off the flower spike at the base of the spike, next to the cane, just cut it as close as possible to the cane and you should be ok. Or you can wait until the flower spike shrivels and turns brown and then cut it off then. It is a matter of preference.

2a. If I do have to cut the whole stalk up to the top most leaf, does this mean that every year (during growth season), it will grow a new cane and then bloom again from the new one, leaving the last season's cane to be used for backup reserves?

Answer: Not sure what you mean buy cut the whole stalk up to the top most leaf, do you mean the flower spike? If so please refer to my previous answer. Yes the last season's cane that previously flowered will become a backbulb for the plant and support the new growths.

Hope this helps!

[scy]

You mean you can cut 1 old cane into several chunks? Won't that kill it? :O

Do you cut it along the lines or anywhere? (Marked on photo.) Are the "joints" the lines on the canes?

Originally Posted by Orchid126

Dendrobiums are propogated on old canes. You can cut them into chunks, or lay the old cane across the medium, and roots and leaves should come from the joints. The new baby will eventually root and then grow leaves, and then hopefully new canes. Before the young plant blooms it will need to grow at least three new canes.

[scy]

Hi Becca! Thanks for your detailed answers! I really appreciate the time you took in explaining this. I just wanted to clarify one of your answers, since I'm apparently clueless on this. Please see below.

** Also please note the photo is one I found online (http://www.orchidstogrow.com/blog/wp...i-Rose-800.jpg) just to help me understand where I should be pruning.

Susan

Originally Posted by Becca

Hi Susan! I'll try and answer your questions:

1.Will it only flower through the top of the cane once the cane is developed and mature? How long does this process take?

Answer: Yes, this particular type of dendrobium flowers from the top of the cane once it has matured. Usually this takes about a year.

2. Once it is done flowering, how do I properly prune it? Do I just let the individual flowers drop on their own and leave everything else in tact or cut the whole stalk up to the top most leaf?

Answer: Once it is finished flowering you can wait until the flowers drop and cut off the flower spike at the base of the spike, next to the cane, just cut it as close as possible to the cane and you should be ok. Or you can wait until the flower spike shrivels and turns brown and then cut it off then. It is a matter of preference.

I attached a photo indicating where I think the flowers should be cut. Is it better to cut the flower stalk to the leaf as soon as the flowers drop or wait until it turns brown to cut? Are there any pros/cons to either one of these?

2a. If I do have to cut the whole stalk up to the top most leaf, does this mean that every year (during growth season), it will grow a new cane and then bloom again from the new one, leaving the last season's cane to be used for backup reserves?

Answer: Not sure what you mean buy cut the whole stalk up to the top most leaf, do you mean the flower spike? If so please refer to my previous answer. Yes the last season's cane that previously flowered will become a backbulb for the plant and support the new growths.

Will the leaves all drop every year before winter? If they do drop, will the leaves ever grow back on old canes or just for new growths?

Hope this helps!

[Becca]

Originally Posted by scy

You mean you can cut 1 old cane into several chunks? Won't that kill it? :O

Do you cut it along the lines or anywhere? (Marked on photo.) Are the "joints" the lines on the canes?

I think normally a cane would be a lot longer, like your other picture you just posted. And the spots where your arrows are pointing to in this picture are where the new keiki's could start from. I wouldn't recommend doing this unless you have a healthy very established plant with lots of backbulbs....and one of those are what you could experiment with. I've tried it before on a den that decided it wanted to commit suicide on me. I had a couple keiki produced, and when the roots were long enough I tried potting it, but I must have been careless with watering as the the little keiki quickly got stem rot and died. Just my two cents!

[Becca]

Originally Posted by scy

Hi Becca! Thanks for your detailed answers! I really appreciate the time you took in explaining this. I just wanted to clarify one of your answers, since I'm apparently clueless on this. Please see below.

** Also please note the photo is one I found online (http://www.orchidstogrow.com/blog/wp...i-Rose-800.jpg) just to help me understand where I should be pruning.

Susan

Yep you have it right! Just cut it off as close to the stem as possible. It doesn't hurt anything if a little stub is left over.

[scy]

I don't plan on trying it anytime soon. I'm still trying to keep my orchids alive and thriving. Just when I read that, I was pretty shocked and wanted to make sure I understood it correctly. If the cane is laid across the medium, wouldn't it rot due to moisture? I don't plan on trying it anytime in the near future; I just wanted to understand how the whole process works.

Originally Posted by Becca

I think normally a cane would be a lot longer, like your other picture you just posted. And the spots where your arrows are pointing to in this picture are where the new keiki's could start from. I wouldn't recommend doing this unless you have a healthy very established plant with lots of backbulbs....and one of those are what you could experiment with. I've tried it before on a den that decided it wanted to commit suicide on me. I had a couple keiki produced, and when the roots were long enough I tried potting it, but I must have been careless with watering as the the little keiki quickly got stem rot and died. Just my two cents!

[scy]

Ah wonderful! Thanks!

When reading your answers, I was wondering is it better to cut the flower stalk to the leaf as soon as the flowers drop or wait until it turns brown to cut? Are there any pros/cons to either one of these?

Will the leaves all drop every year before winter? If they do drop, will the leaves ever grow back on old canes or just for new growths?

Susan

Originally Posted by Becca

Yep you have it right! Just cut it off as close to the stem as possible. It doesn't hurt anything if a little stub is left over.

[johnblagg]

while I agree with most of what everyone has said in this thread I have to disagree with the statement that new roots will not grow from old canes.
I do in fact have a den that is at the moment growing new roots from old canes and have seen the same happen on another den I have.....while it may not be often that it happens it is possible.

[RosieC]

That's interesting John.

I've literally just finished repotting a Den and I knew before I started that most of the roots would need removing (probably should have been removed last time I repotted but then it would have had nothing and I hoped there was something that could still draw water so left them).

Anyway there were new roots arround the new growth from late last year, and there were new roots arround a small new growth that started in Jan... but I could have sworn there were also new roots from the base of the largest old cane. I didn't think it was possible, so put them down having come through the old mass from one of the new canes (I couldn't remove everything old right next to the plant with out risk of damaging them so couldn't be 100% sure where these ones came from).

Now you say this I'm pretty sure they must have been from the old cane, they just looked the wrong angle for the other newer canes.

[johnblagg]

mine have new roots emerging from old canes and they are on the top where you can see that they are from the old cane no doubt at all.