Hey there- I have grown Phals for awhile now, and am curious about propagating them by putting keiki paste on plans nodes. I have done quite a bit of research on this and am finally ready to try!
My question is keiki paste the ONLY thing you can use to get a keiki to grow? Or would it be possible to use some kind of "take root"? Or can you use nothing and still have a keiki to grow from the node if a new flower spike doest appear there?
Keikis can and do appear spontaneously. Some orchids are keiki machines, others are less prone to them.
You might search for "keiki paste recipe". I have heard of coconut water possibly being used, as well as hormone products - usually these are mixed with lanolin, which just serves to hold the other product in place.
Since attempting to propagate at a plant node is not standard, I would recommend using keiki paste and not a recipe someone said would work. If you don't get results, you won't know what the cause was.
I have successfully used keiki paste to start new growth at the crown and flower stalk node after 20 months of no growth of either on a mini-phalaenopsis.