Help!
 

I am not a Neofinetia expert - have about six of them and need help with one. It's a yellow form, a very healthy plant with good growth and roots all over, but it put up four spikes and all the buds blasted. It's in with my cool growing stuff, under quite high light (T5HO). Water and a tiny bit of fertilizer as normal. Any ideas as to the problem? I've not had this happen with the white or green forms. Is it too cool, did I give it too much water, is even a bit of fertilizer too much when it's in spike?

Here, by the way, is a photo of "Gojyo Fukurin' and a link to a blog post with more pictures of it, but it bloomed at a different time of the year and that's what makes me wonder whether temp was the problem with the yellow form. The variegated form bloomed the end of August.

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6222/6...04a07744_t.jpg

Orchids in Bloom: neofinetia falcata

Here's a good link.
Neofinetia falcata Culture

Thanks for the link. Is it possible that I gave it too much water while it was in flower? I know they need a bit of a rest, but it was just starting new root growth and so I upped the water.

I am sorry you had four spikes and all of the buds blasted...it would of given you a magnificent set of blooms...
you are giving it the correct culture.IDK why it blasted... in fact in Yokohama this kind of Neo is grown outdoors mounted on a peach tree and winter can be 32F for 3 months in that area...
in fact you should water it if about to bloom and Neos are not supposed to dry up, its supposed to be moist but not wet...
if near a door and left open the draft will dry the buds...
or did you wet the buds and let it get soaked in cold water? and also we are not supposed to use fertilizer when orchids are in bloom... maybe the chemicals blasted it, I dont know...also humidity issue if you moved its position while in spike...
hope springs eternal; the next time it will bring you more spikes and blooms...cut the blasted spikes to send signal to the plant that it is in growth mode so it will spike again

Hi Ron,

I feel silly trying to give you advice as I know you've been growing orchids much, much longer than I have and have bloomed a variety of different species.

So all I can tell you about are the mistakes I made and my experiences with neos. Unless you watered to the point where you had root rot, I doubt it's from overwatering. Neos get a lot of water in their natural habitat during the growing season. I've had a few neo spikes blast in the past from too high light or fertilizer.

I've learned that once the nub is clear enough to be identified as a spike, I hold off on fertilizer and make sure the light is not too extremely bright. The temp in the room may be cool but if the plant is close to the T5 bulb, perhaps the heat from the bulb affected the spike? I know the T5's don't give off as much heat as regular bulbs but if it's close enough, who knows?

I had blasting from natural sunlight on the window sill so I'm not sure if it was the actual high light levels or if it was from the temp increase from the bright light. However, the fertilizer issue seemed to be pretty consistent, especially if you use usual concentration of regular orchid fertilizer. Not all neos are this touchy but some are. I have some neo varieties that bloom successfully every year no matter what abuse I decide to give them. A few of my other neos varieties blast buds if I don't pay attention to the temp, light and fertilizer.

Also, the yellows are said to be not true species because they have some ascocentrum in their background. I don't know if this has anything to do with different blooming times compared with the species neos.

BTW, your photos are always amazing and I enjoy them.

Hope this helps!

That is exactly my own sentiments...Ron have shown us all what unique flowers and orchids he can bloom and he is always a mentor to me for I learn a lot from Ron's postings...
It is this respect that I should come to the rescue and watch his back when he needs help...the simplest way I can from my little experience and knowhow of growing Neos...

I have some Neos in a terrarium (but not a cold one like yours Ron, mine gets regular house temperatures) under T5 HO lights. They didn't get any winter rest this year, partially because they were in bad shape last fall. One of them is currently in spike, and the buds are growing well (fingers crossed) but I just took it outside of the terrarium (but still under T5) so the spike doesn't get soaked by my automated misting system (4 times a day). I don't know if getting the bud sprays might damage them, but I do know that if you spray the flowers once opened they won't last as long.

Naturally they bloom mostly at a time of the year when temperatures are above 20º C (in the 70s ºF) with night temps above 15º C (in the 50s ºF), I don't know what temps you have in your cold tank, but maybe they got a bit cold?
Hopefully for you the plant will start growing and get ready for next bloom by the end of the summer

They are not near a door or window but in my orchidarium, Bud, and it doesn't get moved.. They do get watered with a sprayer and the buds get water on them, so that may be the problem. I'll have to be more careful. Possibly the fertilizer is an issue, but I only ever use tiny amounts.

These posts have been extremely helpful and have given me some things to try. I think I'll try holding off on fertilizer next time, and your suggestion about lights was also worth trying, Tracy. It's interesting that this plant was closer to the lights than the others and I had no problem with them. hanks for the nice compliment about other posts.

Ob is the best place ever. I know how a new grower feels - you always get an answer and the help you need. I am going to try keeping water off the buds and perhaps also keep them a bit warmer when in spike.