Dying Buds

[Blooming Idiot]

I have repeatedly had my adopted orchid get a stem full of buds. The first couple will bloom but the others die before they open. The plant and leaves look otherwise healthy. I water it about once/week. It gets indirect sunlight. I've included a pic that shows healthy blooms and dead buds circled. Sometimes the buds are about to open when they die. Other times they are very small. Thanks for your help.

[Ray]

There are a variety of things that can affect bud development or loss - low humidity, high temperature, too much light, or mites are the first that jump into mind.

[aliceinwl]

I’ve had this happen on Phals with poor root health. It might be worth checking out what’s going on below the surface. Especially if you’ve had it awhile and its former keeper didn’t do one, repotting into fresh media may be beneficial.

If you do decide to repot, be very conservative when cutting roots (it’s better to leave dead ones on than accidentally cut live ones off), and don’t prophylacticly spray the roots with hydrogen peroxide or other chemicals.