Healthy Bud drops off just before opening

[Amanvari]

I purchased a healthy P. Cesar Delgado 'Zellwood' x Macabre 'Jim Krull' about a month ago which was spiking with a lushious looking bud. It has looked like it was about to open for the last week; so imagine my horror when it fell off the spike yesterday. What could have caused this?

[Bird Song Farm]

Hi,
A number of things can cause bud drop or "blast".
The three most common are:
1. Plant got to dry. It sacrificed the bloom to save itself for future blossoms.
2. Plant got to wet, causing root rot, causing no water to get to the leaves/blossom spike. Again, the plant sacrificed the blossom to try to save itself.
3. A cold draft. Only takes a minute or two of cold air to make the bud blast.

Leave the spike on if possible and if any of the problems above were met and you correct, a new bud will form on the end of the spike.........it will take a long time though.
Hope this is of some help.
Happy Holidays!!
Al

[Amanvari]

Much appreciated. I think I let it get too dry. My fan runs 24/7 perhaps dessicating the plant. Always afraid to over water. Have a great festive season

[Ross]

Originally Posted by Amanvari

I purchased a healthy P. Cesar Delgado 'Zellwood' x Macabre 'Jim Krull' about a month ago which was spiking with a lushious looking bud. It has looked like it was about to open for the last week; so imagine my horror when it fell off the spike yesterday. What could have caused this?

While I don't have this particular Paph, I do know that sometimes advanced buds of Paphs will blast when shocked by moving from one environment to another. Only seems to happen at a certain stage. When buds are really small or when fully open, doesn't happen as often. You may not get anything from the end of the spike. If the spike starts yellowing, just cut it back - you are done for this fan. Above all, opt for the health of the plant. Don't know much about your growing conditions, but in my windowbox environment I have 2 Paphs that get watered every 3-4 days because they are so large and pots are large. Most of the small Paphs and seedlings get watered every other day. Let the condition of the mix be the judge. I like to use clear pots for this reason - I can check on moisture levels down deep in pot. Hope this helps.

[Amanvari]

Thanks Ross. I definitel think the fact that I moved this Paph. to a new position together with underwatering may have resulted in the blasting

[pedidiva]

Amanvari~~

I empathize. I had the same thing happen. The plant has 2 buds. One is shrivelled, the other looks OK. Another plant has a healthy looking bud. The others have new leaves sprouting out. The environment has been the same. No change with the overall temps, watering, light conditions, humidity, etc.

Are paphs generally so tempermental? I'm chalking this up to my learning curve. The foliage is pretty, the plants look happy. I'm confused.

Any help would be appreciated.

Pedi