Newbie needs advice for Phal with bloom blast and sideways stems

[jjorchid89]

Okay I have two Phals. I am very new so all advice is welcome and bear with me as Im unsure of the forum lingo.

Phal one i have had for a year, this is its second bloom. The troubles with this Phal are that it grew outward, im wondering should I have turned it more periodically to stop the leaves and stems from leaning out? And also should I have staked the stems the blooms grow on? I didnt think about it and the stems didnt feel like they would bend without causing damage. The other trouble this orchid has is bloom blast. I put an artificial light (CFL) over it and moved it to a different room hoping to 'pull' the stems up. Seeing that the orchid became unhappy after four weeks, I moved her back to her usual spot and I am hoping that when she readjusts she will be happy again and stop dropping blooms. Im sure this was a rookie mistake and wont make it again. Any advice is appreciated. I have attatched a few photo.
I water her once a week perhaps more during the hot months, and during bloom season i use a fertilizer in the water that is 15-5-5. I have never repotted her.

[fudJy23]

You should probably repot the guy. The moss looks like it's very tightly packed in there. If you repack it with moss, don't pack it so tightly. There are various debates on potting media and you just need to choose what works for you and water accordingly. I have one phal in moss that I water every 2-3 weeks and one in bark that is water minimum of once a week.

The leaves will grow towards the light. You can turn it if you want to try to keep it even. I mine sitting on window sills and have resigned to them just leaning.

As forthe staking, you can, or not. I tend to stake them but have broken the spike a couple of times due to the clipping holding onto the growing tip and breaking it.

Remember, these guys normall grow in the wild and they grow downward.

[silken]

Some Phals do grow a very sideways spike. But they are usually more upward. I don't turn my plants once they begin a spike as the buds that develop can get all turned around searching for light. When the spike is a couple inches long, place a stake near it and gradually start training the spike upward, clipping it to the stake. If the spike grows longer than the stake, it will likely just arch nicely. Arranging the spike upward helps keep it more manageable and not so likely to tip over or take so much shelf space.

I'm not sure how strong your CFL light was or how close you had it but Phals don't require high light. I bloom several of mine sitting in a north facing window in a well lit room. It is often recommended to feed your orchids weakly, weekly. In other words use 1/4 to 1/2 the recommended strength on your fertilizer package and feed on a weekly basis. Or when the plant needs water. Every month or so give the pot a good flush with clear water to remove excess fertilizer salts.

I like to re-pot my Phals when they come home as they are usually packed in very dense moss. Phal roots like to have air as well. But if you have been growing yours for a year as is and the roots and plant are healthy, you may have successfully adapted your watering regime to the tightly packed moss. Different potting medias work for different people.

[RandomGemini]

I don't turn my phals at all. If you do, you end up with this weird propeller look to the plant instead of a nice fan. In my experience, bud blast happens when you move a phal before the bud can begin to open. Once they start opening, you're good, but when they are small and are still closed, they need consistent light levels and consistent conditions in order to flower and even turning the pot can change the amount of humidity, light and temps the buds are exposed to. Phals do best for me with a set it and forget it approach. Once you have found a place where it grows, leave it there and when you water it, put it back exactly like you found it when you are finished.

[tarev]

I don't move my Phal a lot. If it likes that particular area already I leave it be. It only gets moved when I have to water at my sink, but goes back to old spot.

And I am a bit wary with the amount of moss of your Phal..to me, it looks too suffocating already. If it were mine, I would repot into something not moss, to allow more air around the roots.

One of my Phals also do grow that spike sideways, I just let it be, it looks more natural to me actually. The other one I have to stake, otherwise will hit our window and its blooms are much bigger than the other one, so it affords better display in my eyes.

[jjorchid89]

So you would replant it now, and go up a size in pot? or just replace the moss? And what would you replace it with, is there a good kind? Its a small town so I will probably have to order some.

[silken]

I like to use a mix of medium bark and sphagnum moss, which is the moss yours is planted in now. I also notice yours are in ceramic pots. I am assuming they have plastic pots with holes and just in the cache pots for looks?? I grow my Phals without a cache pot until it is blooming and then place it in an ornamental pot to look nice. The ornamental pot cuts down a lot on the airflow of the pot with the holes. I like to know that my Phals can drain well and get good air to the roots to help dry the roots at the bottom and centre of the pot a little more quickly. So always keeping them in those ceramic pots may keep them from getting good air flow.

[tarev]

Originally Posted by jjorchid89

So you would replant it now, and go up a size in pot? or just replace the moss? And what would you replace it with, is there a good kind? Its a small town so I will probably have to order some.

I would repot now, if it were mine. Just be ready to accept it may blast some buds. But I would rather have an orchid with a healthy root system than one that are severely choking. I use chunky bark mix, which I soak overnight before I use it, that way it has some moisture, but have to be more attentive in watering in first few weeks since it dries up fast before it can go more water retentive. Some would add just a little sphag moss, it also works. I just do not add it anymore, in time Phal will adjust. I have also been using containers with side holes, the more holes the better..you do see the roots, it is thick, needs to dry up fast.

Here is my noid Phal currently in bloom..as you can see it is leaning to the side, it has done that and I just let it be, makes some aerial roots which it prefers to do so. My container is a tad deep but it is very airy with the side holes and I have used chunky bark. This is my first Phal got it in Dec 2010. It has taught me a lot of what it likes, leaning to the side, other end a bit up, allows more air. Sometimes we get stuck in the idea that they like lots of water, since they are planted that way when being sold, but that is only to help them last long while in transit or languishing on the store shelf. But once you got them home, you have to tweak and change the media, to help it grow better.

As it started to make its bloom spike for this year:



In bloom right now, two spikes woohoo!

[marle]

Those small hair clips that look like a butterflys work wonderful for clipping the flower stems to the stakes.

[jjorchid89]

Yes the ceramic pots are just for looks, and are a little on the large size so that theres lots of air to the sides of the plastic pot within the ceramic pot.