Can keeping a phal in constant bloom stress it out?

[carykeshen]

I have a few "on id" phals that I forced into second blooms. On a couple of them, the older, lower leaves seem limp. New growth seems okay. Can trying to keep these plants in perpetual bloom stress them out? Also, the flowers on my second blooms don't seem to last nearly as long as on the first blooms. Is that normal?

[PaphMadMan]

If the plant isn't healthy enough to bloom, it won't continue to bloom. "Blooming itself to death" or "Trying to bloom before it dies" are 98% myth, and 99% excuse for poor culture. And 8elieve me, you can't "force" it to bloom. You can enable or encourage it. Many hybrid Phals can bloom continuously for years with no stress involved.

The plant must continue to get normal good care - light, water, fertilizer, repotting, etc. while it is in bloom. Too many people move it to where they can enjoy it and wonder why it doesn't do well in the dark where they forget to water it, or they don't repot when it needs it because it is in bloom.

Now, the combination of limp leaves and flowers not lasting as long as before is a sign of a potential problem. If it is hotter or drier now than when it was first in bloom, that can be the reason for fast fading blooms. But the limp leaves are a problem - not enough water, too much water that killed roots, bad media that killed roots, etc. Maybe a pest problem. Any of which will cause blooms to fade as well. Check for pests, check for fresh media, and check watering frequency.