First spike is growing, when/how do I suppport it?

[Joyorchid]

A unit of yarn is a skein. Not sure how I know that.

[NYCorchidman]

Originally Posted by Joyorchid

A unit of yarn is a skein. Not sure how I know that.

Thank you! now I know.

[kindrag23]

Originally Posted by MattWoelfsen

I shop at Dollar General for all my orchid accessories. LOL! These clips are the same thing as the clips for orchid spikes. I have used those plastic curlers with hollow cores to put inside pots, under orchids to allow for space inside the potting media for greater air circulation. From the wild bird seed garden area I have bought suet cages and used them to mount a couple of orchids (I got that idea from TommyMiami.) Dollar stores are a great source for these kinds of products and they are very inexpensive.

Haha. My mother stole the orchid clips that came withy phal for her hair for a while b4 I realized she was stealing them. Haha. Good luck and congrats on the new growth and spike!!

[Alsani]

Originally Posted by NYCorchidman

...If you are a windowsill grower like me, turning the pot every so often as recommended by someone above, helps the growing spike stay straight up....

I recall reading other threads that cautioned against rotating the pot once a spike had formed. Doing so would/could effect the arrangement/formation(?) of the blooms (e.g. twisted flowers, blooms pointing in different directions, etc).

I have a couple of phals and one or two other plants with spikes and I have been fixating on keeping them in the same position, hoping not to disturb the final arrangement. Am I being too obsessive here? Is this more of a preference, or might it be related to specific orchid types?

[My Green Pets]

Originally Posted by Alsani

I recall reading other threads that cautioned against rotating the pot once a spike had formed. Doing so would/could effect the arrangement/formation(?) of the blooms (e.g. twisted flowers, blooms pointing in different directions, etc).

Here's the deal on that: You can rotate the pot UNTIL you spot the first bud peeking out. THEN pick a position and don't touch it.

[topiarybud]

It's unnecessary to rotate the pot. If you ever visit a nursery, you will understand that it's impossible to rotate so many pots. Without rotating pots, the nursery can still produce neat aligned flowers.
Just remember that the spike grows toward the light, don't change the direction of light. Stake when the spike is long enough for you to fix it on the stake. And the last fix point is never higher than the first bud, unless you want special aligned flowers. Let the end of spike grow downward naturally. The flowers will find their way to bloom.

[NYCorchidman]

Originally Posted by topiarybud

It's unnecessary to rotate the pot. If you ever visit a nursery, you will understand that it's impossible to rotate so many pots. Without rotating pots, the nursery can still produce neat aligned flowers.
Just remember that the spike grows toward the light, don't change the direction of light. Stake when the spike is long enough for you to fix it on the stake. And the last fix point is never higher than the first bud, unless you want special aligned flowers. Let the end of spike grow downward naturally. The flowers will find their way to bloom.

You are not understanding.
We are talking about windowsill growing here.
You cannot move the sun. lol

Indoor growers have to move the plants around so the spike will grow certain way or as desired here, straight up.

In the nursery, rotating the pots is not only impractical as there are so many plants, but it is not needed because the light is coming from up above, hence all the spikes grow straight up on their own.

---------- Post added at 11:24 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:20 AM ----------

Originally Posted by CambriaWhat

Here's the deal on that: You can rotate the pot UNTIL you spot the first bud peeking out. THEN pick a position and don't touch it.

True.

You only stake or train the spike until the growing tip bends and start growing horizontally. Then you don't need to worry about flowers pointing all directions.

By this time, the spike should have been staked straight or it is rather late to fix.

[topiarybud]

Originally Posted by NYCorchidman

You are not understanding.
We are talking about windowsill growing here.
You cannot move the sun. lol

Indoor growers have to move the plants around so the spike will grow certain way or as desired here, straight up.

In the nursery, rotating the pots is not only impractical as there are so many plants, but it is not needed because the light is coming from up above, hence all the spikes grow straight up on their own.

Maybe it's not good example. But my phal on the balcony with only one light direction can be staked upward without rotating pot. This is my own experience for your reference.

[NYCorchidman]

Actually, mines behave pretty good, so I only rotate the pot on just three or so pots.

I don't know why, but I find that those three phals seem to be more light sensitive than other phals I have. They will literally grow straight out horizontally unless I "train" the spikes early on, or they will grow spikes in a very crooked manner.

Others I have are like the ones you described. They grow at around 45 or higher angle, so I just have to tie them up to a stake to make them stand up straight. Or I have tried in the past with grea success, that even with these, I rotated the pots every so often and I managed the spikes grow straight up without ever staking.
I did eventually had to stake to support the weight of flowers.