Repotting with new bloom spikes
 

I have 4 orchids, all of which have some bloom spikes that are not in bloom and have not bloomed yet (some of the spikes are in bloom, some are not). How safe is it to repot when the plant has spikes and is not in bloom (say, after the flowers on the other spikes are gone)? And when should I cut those spikes off?? Thanks! :biggrin:

If you need to repot because the potting media is really in bad shape or if it's inappropriate for your growing habits or growing conditions, then my suggestion would be to do it immediately regardless of whether they're in bloom or not.

If the situation is not dire, then I think you can afford to wait.

It depends on the context of other details within the situation that has not yet been mentioned.

While it is generally not recommened, you can do it. From my limited understanding, the reasoning behind not doing it is that the flowers and stalks are easily damaged even when you are being very careful. Likewise, it is easy to damage the roots (old and growing) while getting all the old medium out of them. The more extensive the root damage the faster those blooms will fall (or not even bud).

As King mentioned, if it is not a dire situation where you must repot, I might wait until it has dropped it's last flower. Just adjust your watering if necessary to avoid water-logged medium.

When you repot an orchid, you stress the plant.
Most repotting is recommended when new roots are expected to be produced. This is where you would want the plant to expend energy in accepting the new media and initiating new growth.
If your plant is in spike, it is generally in a different phase of growth and if repotted may abandon blooming and shift over to root growth etc.
Unless your plant is in danger with poor media, I recommend waiting until after it blooms.
Having repotted many plant with spikes/buds, about 50% of the time I've done this I've lost the blooms...but I accepted the risk because I felt it was best to repot the plant then :)

Oh yes, and that too! Forgot about that part Eyebabe! lol...