How to make Cymbidium bulbs to sprout

[rodrigo]

A few months ago I carefully detached some bulbs from my strongest Cymbidium plants for the purpose of multiplying them.

Out of the 6 bulbs I detached from the mother plants, 2 sprouted OK, but the other 4 have been "sitting" with no signs of wanting to sprout.

The bulbs look healthy (Dark green and hard) and do not have any signs of deterioration. But now it's being almost 7 months!

I have them enclosed in some transparent flasks with moist paper towels.

What else can I do to make them sprout?

Should I loose hope and just discard them?

Thanks for all your help.

Rodrigo

[CTB]

I've heard Olivia Cloning Gel used on the bottom eyes might help. I haven't tried it. I just ordered some gel for a little experimenting myself. Try a search and read some of the other posts. I've seen many about sprouting from bulbs.

[UKCat]

Cyms grow best from back bulbs if there is a minimum of 2 attached together, (better chance if there is 3) if the bulbs have no 'eyes' to grow from you may never get new growth at all.
The longest I had to wait was 13 months, I have no idea why, they just took their time and this was with a multi-bulb division.
I would continue to wait before discarding them they may just be waiting for temps to change before initiating any new growth as it might be the wrong time of year now in your area for new growth to start.

[Cym Ladye]

Rodrigo,

There are many different ways to sprout BBs from Cyms. My best experience is to put them upright in a sealed freezer type zippered Zip Loc quart bag with about a 3" sized pot of your usual mix soaked and well drained. I put the bags in a warm but well lit area and usually get sprouts within 4 weeks. My sprout percentage is about 90%. I only put two bulbs together if they are unusually small for the plant involved.

One can also bury 1/3 of the bulb in a pot of mix, place it under your benches, water and wait.

My bigger concern is you stated:
" A few months ago I carefully detached some bulbs from my strongest Cymbidium plants for the purpose of multiplying them."

Did you remove them from the pot or was this during repotting with the plant out of the pot? If you merely removed the bulbs from the plant while it was in the pot, leaving all the old roots in the pot, you are assuring yourself of a BIG PROBLEM. All those roots will have rotted by now and caused a mushy mess in the pot which will hold water and cause the loss of the remaining roots and general downslide of the plant.

Propagating Cym BBs is fun and rewarding but NEVER do it without removing the roots. Hence, the time to consider BB propagation is when the plants are out of the pot and you are dividing or repotting them.

CL

[rodrigo]

Thanks to all for your informative responses.

Originally Posted by Cym Ladye

Did you remove them from the pot or was this during repotting with the plant out of the pot?
CL

No, I detached them from my potted plants.
I did take the roots out of the detached bulbs, but I guess some "orphaned" roots probably stayed in the pot

The good news is that the plants are doing ok and have bloomed again after the "surgery".
But good point, I agree it was a mistake. I will only multiply plants during a re-pot from now on. Thanks.

Now two more questions arise:
1- How can I tell that the bulbs have "eyes" that will potentially sprout?

2- I have the bulbs in sterilized "recycled" really nice in-vitro flasks I had from a previous flasked plants purchase. They seemed to be quite happy in there with no cotamination.
Should I change them to Zip-Lock bags as Cymb Ladie suggests? The only difference is that I have them sitting on moist paper towels instead of potting mix.

Thanks for your great help!

Rodrigo

[Cym Ladye]

Hi Rodrigo,

It is a known fact that if you ask 10 different orchid growers the same question, you will get 12 different answers!

I visually inspect the BBs I remove, but in many cases, the eyes are not visible yet they end up sprouting. You will get the best results with the larger, mature bulbs from the plant however. My feeling is to be happy with what you get and never expect to get 100% success. Some growers swear by soaking in various ingredients, but the final answer is if it works for you, keep doing what you are doing. If you want to experiment with Zip Lok bags with a mix next time, try it. If you want to move the ones that have not sprouted yet into them, go for it. There is no one way to sprout a Cym BB.

I have never much worried about a sterile environment on BBs as they certainly are not sterilized in nature.

Good luck,

CL

[UKCat]

If you do as Cym Lady suggests and try a different method like a zip lock bag it might be what it needs to kick start it.
I have used a potted in compost and pot and then sealed it in a bag and I have done it with out the bag too and both have given me good results.

As my Cyms are exposited to the elements in the garden for the best part of half a year there would be no point in using sterile conditions as they get tree detritus and bugs all over them for the time they are out there.

[Bobfharris]

I totally concur with CL on the tips and method. Only part I would add is that I use only bark in the medium in the bag. I make sure the bark has been soaked and then drained for several days so there is some moisture in the bark but not excessive. Too much and you get rot, too little and bulbs stay dormant too long.

[Cym Ladye]

Although I did not specify a mix for the Zip Lok bags, like Bob, I have only used a pre-soaked bark/sponge rok mix for my mix of choice. However, I have known others to have success with small pre-soaked coco chips.

Several years ago, I picked up a tip from another hobbyist grower who, once the bulbs were placed with their labels in the bags, actually added water to cover the bark and soaked the bulb(s) overnight. He then thoroughly drained the bag and sealed it up. I have tried it with good success.

I think that the two most important factors which affect the sprouting of a BB are temperature and the time of year it is removed from the plant. The earlier in the growing year, the warmer the temperature, the better the chances.

CL

[rodrigo]

Originally Posted by Cym Ladye

I think that the two most important factors which affect the sprouting of a BB are temperature and the time of year it is removed from the plant. The earlier in the growing year, the warmer the temperature, the better the chances.
CL

Cym Ladye: Thank you for this valuable piece of information (makes lots of sense).

I have another point on this that is puzzling me.
I always clean the bulbs as much as I can. That is besides washing the bulbs, sealing the wound, etc. I also peel all the dead skin from the bulbs.

I feel this is good for 2 reasons:
1- I can clean the bulbs so much better because I don't have all this dead matter, dirt, etc. covering them.
2- I exposed to the light all the green areas of the bulb, which will get photosynthesis going to its maximum on the bulb.

My only concern with the above is the possibility I might be causing some harm to the "eyes" of the bulb and deter sprouting.
The natural way of peeling the dead skin is by starting to pull on the skin from the top down and then it detaches at the joints (eyes) of the bulb.

Can anybody provide a comment on this?

Thanks,

Rodrigo