Help! Flower spikes have "snapped" off overnight!
{Question from England] I have a pair of cymbidiums that are well
established over 6 years in my care and one has been flowering with a single spike for the past 2. The other hasn't flowered for 3 years and has just recently pushed up two strong spikes followed by another two which are still at the "wrapped in leaves" stage. Hooray - I thought! This morning we discovered that the two larger spikes which were in the process of unfurling the buds and about 9" have "snapped" off overnight, halfway up the stems. The break is clean and there is a bead of moisture sitting on the top of both open stems. These were both given identical treatment and spent the entire summer outdoors and about a 6 weeks ago were brought into an indoor room which is not particularly warm. They are by a window and receive a few hours of dappled sunlight each morning and ordinary daylight for the rest. The other cymbidium has remained in full magnificent flower for a month! I gave them a small amount of "orchid fertiliser" 3 weeks ago and they appear slightly moist but definitely not wet. Can anyone help, please? Any advice will be gratefully appreciated! ______________________________________ Advertise for free on www.my-ads.co.uk |
Help! Flower spikes have "snapped" off overnight!
Do you own a cat or dog?
That sounds like a mechanical break of an otherwise healthy spike, to me. -- Ray Barkalow - First Rays Orchids - www.firstrays.com Plants, Supplies, Books, Artwork, and Lots of Free Info! .. . . . . . . . . . . "{masked}" wrote in message ... {Question from England] I have a pair of cymbidiums that are well established over 6 years in my care and one has been flowering with a single spike for the past 2. The other hasn't flowered for 3 years and has just recently pushed up two strong spikes followed by another two which are still at the "wrapped in leaves" stage. Hooray - I thought! This morning we discovered that the two larger spikes which were in the process of unfurling the buds and about 9" have "snapped" off overnight, halfway up the stems. The break is clean and there is a bead of moisture sitting on the top of both open stems. These were both given identical treatment and spent the entire summer outdoors and about a 6 weeks ago were brought into an indoor room which is not particularly warm. They are by a window and receive a few hours of dappled sunlight each morning and ordinary daylight for the rest. The other cymbidium has remained in full magnificent flower for a month! I gave them a small amount of "orchid fertiliser" 3 weeks ago and they appear slightly moist but definitely not wet. Can anyone help, please? Any advice will be gratefully appreciated! ______________________________________ Advertise for free on www.my-ads.co.uk |
Help! Flower spikes have "snapped" off overnight!
Hi Ray,
This is what really surprised us for it looks like a straight-forward mechanical break halfway up the spike. We don't have any house pets and both pots are on a desk by a window which has a blind that is accessed some 5 feet away from the nearest plant. There is no need to reach over the plants. Also only one grown-up [allegedly] son remaining at home who seldom ventures into my office - so no young kids to throw balls etc. Nigel "Ray" wrote in message ... Do you own a cat or dog? That sounds like a mechanical break of an otherwise healthy spike, to me. -- Ray Barkalow - First Rays Orchids - www.firstrays.com Plants, Supplies, Books, Artwork, and Lots of Free Info! . . . . . . . . . . . "{masked}" wrote in message ... {Question from England] I have a pair of cymbidiums that are well established over 6 years in my care and one has been flowering with a single spike for the past 2. The other hasn't flowered for 3 years and has just recently pushed up two strong spikes followed by another two which are still at the "wrapped in leaves" stage. Hooray - I thought! This morning we discovered that the two larger spikes which were in the process of unfurling the buds and about 9" have "snapped" off overnight, halfway up the stems. The break is clean and there is a bead of moisture sitting on the top of both open stems. These were both given identical treatment and spent the entire summer outdoors and about a 6 weeks ago were brought into an indoor room which is not particularly warm. They are by a window and receive a few hours of dappled sunlight each morning and ordinary daylight for the rest. The other cymbidium has remained in full magnificent flower for a month! I gave them a small amount of "orchid fertiliser" 3 weeks ago and they appear slightly moist but definitely not wet. Can anyone help, please? Any advice will be gratefully appreciated! ______________________________________ Advertise for free on www.my-ads.co.uk |
Help! Flower spikes have "snapped" off overnight!
"Ray" wrote in message ...
Do you own a cat or dog? That sounds like a mechanical break of an otherwise healthy spike, to me. That's what it sounds like to me too. I have three cats. Though they have never damaged an orchid, they have managed to wreak havoc on a couple of cacti. They enjoy rubbing themselves on the spines, for some perverse feline reason. In doing so they have knocked new pads off opuntia and tephrocacti. I lecture them about it, but they ignore me. J. Del Col |
Help! Flower spikes have "snapped" off overnight!
Nigel,
I can think of no "physiological" reason why such a thing would happen without the application of outside force... -- Ray Barkalow - First Rays Orchids - www.firstrays.com Plants, Supplies, Books, Artwork, and Lots of Free Info! .. . . . . . . . . . . "{masked}" wrote in message ... Hi Ray, This is what really surprised us for it looks like a straight-forward mechanical break halfway up the spike. We don't have any house pets and both pots are on a desk by a window which has a blind that is accessed some 5 feet away from the nearest plant. There is no need to reach over the plants. Also only one grown-up [allegedly] son remaining at home who seldom ventures into my office - so no young kids to throw balls etc. Nigel "Ray" wrote in message ... Do you own a cat or dog? That sounds like a mechanical break of an otherwise healthy spike, to me. -- Ray Barkalow - First Rays Orchids - www.firstrays.com Plants, Supplies, Books, Artwork, and Lots of Free Info! . . . . . . . . . . . "{masked}" wrote in message ... {Question from England] I have a pair of cymbidiums that are well established over 6 years in my care and one has been flowering with a single spike for the past 2. The other hasn't flowered for 3 years and has just recently pushed up two strong spikes followed by another two which are still at the "wrapped in leaves" stage. Hooray - I thought! This morning we discovered that the two larger spikes which were in the process of unfurling the buds and about 9" have "snapped" off overnight, halfway up the stems. The break is clean and there is a bead of moisture sitting on the top of both open stems. These were both given identical treatment and spent the entire summer outdoors and about a 6 weeks ago were brought into an indoor room which is not particularly warm. They are by a window and receive a few hours of dappled sunlight each morning and ordinary daylight for the rest. The other cymbidium has remained in full magnificent flower for a month! I gave them a small amount of "orchid fertiliser" 3 weeks ago and they appear slightly moist but definitely not wet. Can anyone help, please? Any advice will be gratefully appreciated! ______________________________________ Advertise for free on www.my-ads.co.uk |
Help! Flower spikes have "snapped" off overnight!
On Fri, 7 Nov 2003 09:05:06 -0000, "{masked}"
wrote: This morning we discovered that the two larger spikes which were in the process of unfurling the buds and about 9" have "snapped" off overnight, halfway up the stems. The break is clean and there is a bead of moisture sitting on the top of both open stems. Considering you don't have pets or wayward children, I'll take a WAG and suggest a mouse, or some similar creature, climbing the stalk to munch a bud. bb |
Help! Flower spikes have "snapped" off overnight!
On Fri, 07 Nov 2003 14:24:38 GMT, bb wrote:
On Fri, 7 Nov 2003 09:05:06 -0000, "{masked}" wrote: This morning we discovered that the two larger spikes which were in the process of unfurling the buds and about 9" have "snapped" off overnight, halfway up the stems. The break is clean and there is a bead of moisture sitting on the top of both open stems. Considering you don't have pets or wayward children, I'll take a WAG and suggest a mouse, or some similar creature, climbing the stalk to munch a bud. bb Your sure there is no munch on center of the bend? A Slug/Snail munch can weaken a stem so that it will bend forward over the cut. Much as a logger cuts a wedge on the side he wants to fell the tree. SuE http://orchids.legolas.org/gallery/albums.php |
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