Can't get orchids to reflower

[StormOrchid]

I've had orchids for 3 years now, having bought several from the supermarket over the years so I've now got about 6 of them (having thrown out 2 last year). I seem to be an utter failure at getting them to thrive I have NEVER managed to get any of them to reflower! The leaves always seem to look green and glossy, I run water through them once a week and let them drain (so never sitting in water). I have them in numerous places round the house (windowsils (pushed back as I have deep recesses) / shelves etc.). They seem to get little buds bits on them but nothing ever becomes of them, they just shrivel up. I've cut ones right down and they've grown new stems but same thing happens. I've tried giving them regular orchid fertiliser (the kind that slowly drips in) but nothing seems to work.

Our house is quite cold generally (draughty old house on top of a hill in NE Scotland, you get the picture!). Could this be the simple issue that our house is too cold for orchids?

Any help would be great, I love orchids when they're in bloom so its driving me nuts that I cannot help them thrive!

[silken]

Welcome to Orchid Board. It really depends which type of orchid you are referring to, but I am assuming you mean Phals.

Posting some pictures of them would help. Phals do not require a lot of light, so that is not likely a problem. Any hot or chilly drafts on new buds could cause them to blast. Also leaving fruit such as bananas in the vicinity can cause blasting due to ethylene gas released by ripening fruit.

I find my Phals like a cool drop in temp for 4 to 6 weeks in the fall and this will initiate a bloom spike. But if yours are on windowsills then come fall, they likely get that drop. If the temps are above 15C they should be OK.

How are the roots? If it has poor roots, it may not be able to support blooms.

These are a few things to consider.

[dangerouseddy]

if he has central heating on during winter it could be a low humidity problem. it is in my house, even though we have double glazing its still only 20% atm

[Leafmite]

Drafty would definitely be a problem. We live where it is windy and the double glass doors where I grew all my orchids and tropicals were not tightly sealed. I bought a roll of heavy clear, plastic drop cloth and put it over the window. That solved the problem. You can also make a little tent with it, too, and buy a seedling heat mat to put under the pots. It would be like a little greenhouse.

[Optimist]

That's why many of us are here! I got some orchids many years ago and killed them immedietly. No explination as far as I knew. Now I do know different. You wouldn't go to a fishstore, buy a fish and toss it in a mop bucket of tap water and expect it to thrive. I was a phal serial killer, and could have given a college level course on how to kill orchids, but not how to make them flower.

Orchids will not flower if they are living marginally. Something in your culture is not going right. You need to measure all the measurable phenominon and figure out where the problem is. Then you need to tweak and experiment until you get it right.