Multiple spikes

[gingersmommy]

I'm still waiting for any spike, however, in looking at pics or when buying at the grocery store, many orchid plants have two spikes. How do you get that?

[johnny31623]

usually older, healthier and stronger plants tend to have more spikes with more flowers.

[greenpassion]

60% of my phals this year are now giving me double spikes, but last year the ones that spiked only gave me one. I think that the older and more mature phals tend to send up double or more spikes, and I think too that genetics plays a role in that as well. Many of my phals are also sending up branching double spikes, whereas last year only half a dozen did that. So from my limited experience, the culture they are growing in, genetics and age are all a factor. I also understand that orchids found in grocery stores and big box stores have been grown under conditions most likely different from the cultural conditions of a house.

[camille1585]

Originally Posted by johnny31623

usually older, healthier and stronger plants tend to have more spikes with more flowers.

That's true for home grown spikes, but not for the plants we buy in bloom in supermarkets and such. Those are usually young plants blooming for the first time, but commercial growers provide optimal feeding/watering, and blooming (including multiple spikes) is primarily controlled by temperature and light levels. They know exactly how and when to raise or lower the temperature for ideal spiking. When they want to induce spikes, the greenhouses are cooled to 17-25C. if they go to the lower end of that range double spikes are frequent.

Have a look at this interesting AOS article which explains it all fromt he commercial grower perspective.
http://www.staugorchidsociety.org/PD...opsisPart4.pdf

But for plants at home, we can't come anywhere near that fine level of environmental control. If you grow your plants well (water, fertilizer, light, etc) a mature plant will be much more likely to produce 2 spikes. Genetics does have a lot to do with it as well, some may never/rarely produce 2 spikes.

For me at least, I don't start to get double spikes (if it happens) until I've been growing that Phal 2-3 years already.