Not Blooming

[jhiland]

I really hope I am putting this in the correct area as I'm not sure whether it is a S/H issue or a general cultivation issue.

I have a handful of orchids, most of them being Phal hybrids of some sort. I do have two "Sharry Babies" though. I bought one two years ago in full bloom, and the other one I received a couple months prior (not in bloom). I haven't been able to get them to bloom since.

They were potted in normal orchid medium (I honestly can't recall if it was bark or moss anymore), and I did some research on S/H and repotted them into S/H about 18 months ago. Nothing in the flower area. They are producing new pseudo-bulbs, new roots, new leaves (and I haven't lost a single leaf on my phals...some of them are up to 7 or 8 leaves each which is a record considering before I was lucky if I had ones with 4!). When I first got my oncidiums the leaves had some dark speckling (kind of looked like freckles) that are no longer there, so I'm not sure if this is a good or bad sign.

I'm not going to lie, I'm pretty laid back and not the most attentive orchid grower. My medium will completely dry out before I realize it's no longer wet, sometimes I forget to open my blinds for days on end, and I couldn't tell you to save my life what temperatures they are kept at.

I brought up the lack of blooms to the woman whom I purchase my plants from, and she told me to make sure I'm fertilizing, giving adequate light, and if that doesn't do it then re-pot (I'm assuming this is a "stresser" that some people swear by).

I just started using MSU yesterday (1/2 tsp for 1 gallon water), and made sure my blinds were open. The air conditioner is set to 70 degrees, but it's over 90 outside (and since they're right by the window I'm going to assume they are slightly warmer than where the A/C is on the other side of the room)

Is there something else I should do to encourage some blooms? How important are the temperatures? Should I allow them to dry out before adding more water (I've read that some people swear Onc's like to be completely dry before being watered). Also, how long should I wait before reassessing my culturing?

[svlair]

Other than the advice you have already received, Phals need some fall chilling to spike reliably. Ten to 14 days of nighttime temperatures of 60-65 degrees should be sufficient to initiate flower spikes. Good luck!

[WhiteRabbit]

If it's the Sharry Babys that aren't blooming - I'd try more light

[jhiland]

How do you recommend getting more light? I'm on a semi-tight budget and can't afford anything fancy. I live in Wisconsin, should I bring it outside to a western shaded balcony? The temps are in the 90's though.

[svlair]

Oncidiums are medium to bright orchids, similar to Cattleyas. Summering outdoors will help if there is enough mid-day shading. Wintering will require a South facing window to achieve enough light. Check your leaf color. Dark green leaves on an Oncidium indicates insufficient light.

[WhiteRabbit]

Originally Posted by jhiland

How do you recommend getting more light? I'm on a semi-tight budget and can't afford anything fancy. I live in Wisconsin, should I bring it outside to a western shaded balcony? The temps are in the 90's though.

Having the blinds open daily might be sufficient. How much light does that window get? An east or west facing window that isn't completely shaded is probably good.

Mine grows outside. Temps can be in the 90s, but it gets morning light, before the temps are that high. If the balcony is shaded from the afternoon sun and heat, I don't think the high temps would be a problem, but I don't know how much sun it would get.

I keep mine slightly moist, but if yours was under-watered significantly, there will be excessively shriveled pbulbs and/or pleated new growth.

It takes some time with proper light, and the plant has to be in the proper stage of growth before spiking.

[jhiland]

The window is east facing, and the balcony is facing the west.

[Chatbud]

Dear all

Can being too well-fed and direct sun prevent my orchids from blooming?

I’ve been told my orchids (3 vandas (1 is reblooming now!YAY!), a number of mini dens and full-sized den phal) are kinda FAT – the psbs are all plump, foliage all jade green.
I water them every morning. The vandas are sprayed at every morning and evening.
Some of them get splashed by direct sun for around 2-3 hours daily, otherwise they are all in partial shade the whole day.
I give them all kinds of “junk” weekly – diluted orchid NPK, diluted seaweed and fish emul. and leftover water which we use to wash rice and veggie.

The only issue I can see is temperature (I’m guessing) – at where I am, day and night time temps range narrowly between 80-90F. All plants are placed outdoors.
The only time we experience drop in temps is during the year-end when night time temp falls to 65F lowest.
Don’t tell me I have to wait till year-end to get some blooms??

[WhiteRabbit]

Too much nitrogen can prevent blooming, tho I don't know if that's the case with yours.

Very dark green foliage may be a symptom of too little light. But some orchids have naturally darker green foliage than others, even with optimal light.

My (two) small Den-phals usually spike mid to late summer - one has some buds developing now, the other has just started spikes.

What type(s) are your other Dens?

[WhiteRabbit]

Originally Posted by jhiland

The window is east facing, and the balcony is facing the west.

The east facing window might be fine with the blinds open daily.