Dendrobium nobile- odd growth cycle?

[carnegieo575]

Hi guys,

Hopefully someone with some experience over time with Dendrobium nobiles can chime in here. Based on everything I read about them for their growth cycle, mine doesn’t seem follow it. I live in Wisconsin zone 5a. It’s a no-id. I bought it last year in March from a greenhouse while it was in full bloom. Many blooms on all canes. When I got it with the blooms, it had 3 new canes a few inches tall (not keikis) at the time as well. After the blooms faded and the weather warmed up, I repotted, let it recover, then had it outdoors by June. It grew lots of roots and the new canes I mentioned grew their last leaves and stopped growing probably mid July. I kept caring as normal with good light(some direct, no burning) good humidity and plenty of water, some light fertilizer until weather cooled toward the end of August. I began to decrease watering frequency until I had to bring it inside in October, when we started getting frequent hard freezes. Brought it to the coolest place in my home in my basement with as much light as I could give it, which is not all that much in that window that time of year (N/NW.) Watered sparingly. Probably around December I saw the spike nodes appearing, only on two canes. They blasted on one cane (I presume because of lack of water despite general advice) but the other one opened beautifully a few days ago. Around the same time as the flower spikes emerged, 3 new canes began to appear (again not keikis.) as you can see in the pics how large the new growths are alongside the blooms and we’re in February. I’ve been increasing watering over the last month or so to prevent canes from shriveling. Also brought to a brighter, warmer window. Everything I read says the new growths appear later in the spring and mature through the end of Summer, go through winter rest, bloom, repeat. But mine seems to begin to grow flower spikes and new foliage at the same time, mature growths by midsummer, stop growing, repeat. It looks like a beautiful and healthy plant, but seems weird the new growths appear so early and I got so few blooms. But when I got it from the grower it also had the new progressed growths alongside the blooms. I’m wondering what the deal is, and any tips you may have to have better blooms. My guess is that the temp drop and cooling in the fall was enough, and I should’ve just had it in a brighter, warmer window the whole winter rather than concentrating on keeping it cooler? Either way the new growths look great and light green despite being in a darker window. Let me know what you think, thanks for reading my history with this plant haha.