Hey Hey Hey... - Orchid Board

JDawggie · #1 03-19-2011, 05:57 PM

Hi All...I went to home depot last summer to buy a tool and came home with an orchid! That was my first orchid purchase ever (actually, first flower purchase for myself and not a girlfriend!). Fast forward 8 months, I now have 5 Phalaenopsis orchids that are all doing well....of course, I want more!!

I joined the orchid board to gain further knowledge about growing these incredible flowers and have a place I can ask questions to other Orchid growers / addicts. So far I am stuck on getting my plants to re-spike?? I am hoping to get some answers searching around on that topic....That is all for now...

Vanda lover · #2 03-19-2011, 06:10 PM

Hi and welcome!
To get them to re spike, it's important that the night temperatures are cooler than the day temperatures. If they are on a windowsill or in a sunroom, it's quite likely that they are getting the temperature drop at night. Sometimes they can be stuborn at this time of year, where we are it's cloudy a lot, maybe with the longer days of spring, bloom should come soon.

Discus · #3 03-19-2011, 06:32 PM

Welcome to Orchid Board

Yes, a temperature drop is important for triggering re-blooming in Phalaenopsis, as Vanda Lover says

I think you might find this current thread really interesting: http://www.orchidboard.com/community...ends-here.html

Zoi2 · #4 03-19-2011, 08:19 PM

Hello and welcome
Joann

JDawggie · #5 03-19-2011, 09:18 PM

Thank you for the replies. It sounds like the temperature drop is the ey to get my orchids to re-spike.

I know this may not be the correct place to ask another question, but....how do I "drop' the temperature to get a re-spike? Should I move it to another location within my house that seems to be cooler?

Thanks!
Jared

JDawggie · #6 03-19-2011, 09:20 PM

I will post in the Phal abuse thread given...that makes more sense.

Thanks!

Vanda lover · #7 03-19-2011, 09:24 PM

Is your plant on a cool window sill or sunroom that gets cooler at night? Do you turn your thermostat down at night! These things could help.

JDawggie · #8 03-19-2011, 09:34 PM

I do have another sill in a different room -- not totally eastern facing that gets good sun, but the sill is on concrete, so it does get cooler -- for sure...I would just be concerned about it being too cold .. Maybe I will try just turning the heat down a bit for a while and see if that does anything.

Paul Mc · #9 03-20-2011, 10:20 AM

It may be too late to initiate the bloom cycle this year, but it truly depends upon what species they were bred with. Plus, if you bought them blooming out of season they may skip a year before reblooming as they acclimate to your seasonal changes.

Your best bet would be to have patience and take them outside this year so they can experience the natural rhythm of temperatures and get acclimated to our climate. Be sure to put them in a sheltered location as they cannot get any water in the leaf areas. They do not grow upright and as a result any water in the leaves could cause them to get rot and die.

Once the night time temperatures start getting into the low 60's you might be experiencing between a 10 to 15 degree temperature change from day to night. This would be ideal to get them to rebloom the next year. I would not leave them outside if your temperatures are expected to get into the 50's though. If you think the weather people may be off, play it safe and bring them indoors.

RosieC · #10 03-20-2011, 10:53 AM

Welcome to Orchid Board

If they were in flower when bought then they might not be ready to flower again, even with the temperature drop. They need to grow and store energy before flowering again.

Generally Phals will flower annually around the spring (although very vigorous healthy ones may flower more often), after the winter drop in temps. From what I remember reading here, the Nurseries will force them to carry on growing for 18months by keeping the temperatures at the higher end that promotes growth. They then drop the temps and all the phals spike together (ready for sale) because they are all overdue for flowering and so the temp change will quickly trigger the spikes.

Because they control the temperatures so closely they can get them to flower any time of year for sale. When you take them home they may need some time to grow again before they are ready to flower. If they are not ready when you drop the temps it probably won't do anything. I see that when I get a natural temperature drop those which have not flowered in a while are likely to spike, while those that did not flower that long ago won't.