Hello from S. New Jersey

[snow]

many times one can tell the flower colour by leave colour.
if the leaves have a purple tinge to them especially on the undersides; the flowers are often pink or darker in colour.
if the leaves are more greenish; they are often white or yellow or any lif=ghtcoloured flower.
hope this helps.
check the leaves.

[Swamprat]

Originally Posted by Lilavati

I did have a supposedly "harlequin" white and purple orchid that when it bloomed was nearly all purple and very little white . . . but I don't think that's what's wrong . . . I think you have a white orchid that someone thought was a purple one . . . its sort of hard to tell if they aren't blooming! My guess is that the tags got mixed up in the store, or that the rest of the shipment was purple so its was assumed it would also be purple. But white is pretty too, and if you really want a purple one as well, they are easy to come by.

Which direction does your window face?

Here in New Jersey they say that a plant that needs direct or alot of sunlight should be placed in a South facing window. My Phal (as well as my Bonsai trees) are next to my sink in the kitchen under a North window. I am currently trying to talk the rest of my household into letting me put them in the living room under a south window but I am very hesitant because I have two dogs and a cat. The dogs put their paws on the window sill and bark at traffic and the cat likes to lay in the window sill. My plants seem to be well where they are but that North window in the kitchen is filling up fast. I haven't moved them because this is the only window in the house without something in front of it.

[Lilavati]

Originally Posted by Swamprat

Here in New Jersey they say that a plant that needs direct or alot of sunlight should be placed in a South facing window. My Phal (as well as my Bonsai trees) are next to my sink in the kitchen under a North window. I am currently trying to talk the rest of my household into letting me put them in the living room under a south window but I am very hesitant because I have two dogs and a cat. The dogs put their paws on the window sill and bark at traffic and the cat likes to lay in the window sill. My plants seem to be well where they are but that North window in the kitchen is filling up fast. I haven't moved them because this is the only window in the house without something in front of it.

Unless it is a very large, bright north window, it may well be too dark for most of your plants, even the Phals . . .if you can find a safe east window, that would be best, or south with some sort of thin curtain. Another thing to do would be to put up a grow light . . . my office window faces north (into a wall) but its floor to ceiling and I am fairly high up . . . I find an assortment of jury rigged lights keeps the plants happy while they are there (they are only there when in bloom, except the Rex Begonias, who really don't seem to care much about light). But I think without the added light, as minimal as it is, it would be a stuggle. And it would be much harder if it wasn't such a BIG window.

[cabbo]

Hey Swamprat, great name. Any suggestions on a good orchid source in our area?