HELP: three Phals...
 

I am a formerly proud owner of three Phals. As a recently divorced
man, I purchased them in an effort to give my condo life. While they
were in bloom they were magnificent, unfortunatly they have reduced
themselves to dry brown stems with a couple of green leaves beneath.
I have been careful not to overwater, but I wonder if I haven't given
them enough water (becsue the stems are brown and dried).

Is there a way I can encourage a fresh blooming in these plants? I
appologize in advance for any questions I may ask. I have tried to do
some research and have become quite confused by the information out
there.

Thank you so much for your help.

Todd

On Mon, 8 Nov 2004 08:23:39 -0800, todd wrote
(in article ) :

I am a formerly proud owner of three Phals. As a recently divorced
man, I purchased them in an effort to give my condo life. While they
were in bloom they were magnificent, unfortunatly they have reduced
themselves to dry brown stems with a couple of green leaves beneath.
I have been careful not to overwater, but I wonder if I haven't given
them enough water (becsue the stems are brown and dried).

Is there a way I can encourage a fresh blooming in these plants? I
appologize in advance for any questions I may ask. I have tried to do
some research and have become quite confused by the information out
there.

Thank you so much for your help.

Todd

No apologies necessary. If you're expecting continuous or frequent
bloom, orchids may not be the plant for you.
It sounds as though your phals are doing what phals do: sending up new
inflorescences (stems, or spikes) every few months, up to every year. It
takes forever for buds to open, and then most phal blooms will last for
months. Sometimes they will bloom repeatedly from lower nodes on the
inflorescence, but if the entire thing is brown and dry, it's time to cut it
off as close to the base as practical, continue watering and fertilizing,
watch new roots and leaves grow, and wait for the next inflorescence.
Some of the new roots, BTW, may be exuberantly aerial, which is OK, and
will be thick and grey, with pointy green tips, which distinguishes them from
new inflorescences. As new leaves grow from the crown, the oldest leaves on
the plant will yellow and drop off.
There are some orchids which will bloom more often, or even serially
from the same inflorescence. Get hold of the Ortho book of orchid growing,
and check with a commercial grower or the orchid society in your area for the
best possibilities, if you're interested.
Good luck.

Tom
Walnut Creek, CA
Nikon CP 5700

On Mon, 8 Nov 2004 08:23:39 -0800, todd wrote
(in article ) :

I am a formerly proud owner of three Phals. As a recently divorced
man, I purchased them in an effort to give my condo life. While they
were in bloom they were magnificent, unfortunatly they have reduced
themselves to dry brown stems with a couple of green leaves beneath.
I have been careful not to overwater, but I wonder if I haven't given
them enough water (becsue the stems are brown and dried).

Is there a way I can encourage a fresh blooming in these plants? I
appologize in advance for any questions I may ask. I have tried to do
some research and have become quite confused by the information out
there.

Thank you so much for your help.

Todd

No apologies necessary. If you're expecting continuous or frequent
bloom, orchids may not be the plant for you.
It sounds as though your phals are doing what phals do: sending up new
inflorescences (stems, or spikes) every few months, up to every year. It
takes forever for buds to open, and then most phal blooms will last for
months. Sometimes they will bloom repeatedly from lower nodes on the
inflorescence, but if the entire thing is brown and dry, it's time to cut it
off as close to the base as practical, continue watering and fertilizing,
watch new roots and leaves grow, and wait for the next inflorescence.
Some of the new roots, BTW, may be exuberantly aerial, which is OK, and
will be thick and grey, with pointy green tips, which distinguishes them from
new inflorescences. As new leaves grow from the crown, the oldest leaves on
the plant will yellow and drop off.
There are some orchids which will bloom more often, or even serially
from the same inflorescence. Get hold of the Ortho book of orchid growing,
and check with a commercial grower or the orchid society in your area for the
best possibilities, if you're interested.
Good luck.

Tom
Walnut Creek, CA
Nikon CP 5700

Hi,

No need to apologize. It is normal for an inflorescence to dry up after
the plant is done flowering. It doesn't mean the plant is dying or in
bad shape. If it's healthy, it should bloom yearly, so basically, just
keep taking good care of it.

Cheers,
Xi

todd wrote:
I am a formerly proud owner of three Phals. As a recently divorced
man, I purchased them in an effort to give my condo life. While they
were in bloom they were magnificent, unfortunatly they have reduced
themselves to dry brown stems with a couple of green leaves beneath.
I have been careful not to overwater, but I wonder if I haven't given
them enough water (becsue the stems are brown and dried).

Is there a way I can encourage a fresh blooming in these plants? I
appologize in advance for any questions I may ask. I have tried to do
some research and have become quite confused by the information out
there.

Thank you so much for your help.

Todd

tbell wrote in message ...
On Mon, 8 Nov 2004 08:23:39 -0800, todd wrote
(in article ) :

I am a formerly proud owner of three Phals. As a recently divorced
man, I purchased them in an effort to give my condo life. While they
were in bloom they were magnificent, unfortunatly they have reduced
themselves to dry brown stems with a couple of green leaves beneath.
I have been careful not to overwater, but I wonder if I haven't given
them enough water (becsue the stems are brown and dried).

Is there a way I can encourage a fresh blooming in these plants? I
appologize in advance for any questions I may ask. I have tried to do
some research and have become quite confused by the information out
there.

Thank you so much for your help.

Todd

No apologies necessary. If you're expecting continuous or frequent
bloom, orchids may not be the plant for you.
It sounds as though your phals are doing what phals do: sending up new
inflorescences (stems, or spikes) every few months, up to every year. It
takes forever for buds to open, and then most phal blooms will last for
months. Sometimes they will bloom repeatedly from lower nodes on the
inflorescence, but if the entire thing is brown and dry, it's time to cut it
off as close to the base as practical, continue watering and fertilizing,
watch new roots and leaves grow, and wait for the next inflorescence.
Some of the new roots, BTW, may be exuberantly aerial, which is OK, and
will be thick and grey, with pointy green tips, which distinguishes them from
new inflorescences. As new leaves grow from the crown, the oldest leaves on
the plant will yellow and drop off.
There are some orchids which will bloom more often, or even serially
from the same inflorescence. Get hold of the Ortho book of orchid growing,
and check with a commercial grower or the orchid society in your area for the
best possibilities, if you're interested.
Good luck.

Tom
Walnut Creek, CA
Nikon CP 5700

Groovy, So I think I will snip em as close to the base as possible.
and wait. One of them has been a "stick" now for for nearly a year.
I guess if I am reading this correctly, it may be up to a year after
the curring that a new inflorescence will start to grow. I guess I
should have been on this board a while back!

On an unrelated note, this artist often has beautiful (georgia okeefe
- esque) pictures of orchids available. Various price points... As
gorgeous as they are, they I got more joy from my plants when they
were in bloom.

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQgotopage...sortpropertyZ1

Thank you

tbell wrote in message ...
On Mon, 8 Nov 2004 08:23:39 -0800, todd wrote
(in article ) :

I am a formerly proud owner of three Phals. As a recently divorced
man, I purchased them in an effort to give my condo life. While they
were in bloom they were magnificent, unfortunatly they have reduced
themselves to dry brown stems with a couple of green leaves beneath.
I have been careful not to overwater, but I wonder if I haven't given
them enough water (becsue the stems are brown and dried).

Is there a way I can encourage a fresh blooming in these plants? I
appologize in advance for any questions I may ask. I have tried to do
some research and have become quite confused by the information out
there.

Thank you so much for your help.

Todd

No apologies necessary. If you're expecting continuous or frequent
bloom, orchids may not be the plant for you.
It sounds as though your phals are doing what phals do: sending up new
inflorescences (stems, or spikes) every few months, up to every year. It
takes forever for buds to open, and then most phal blooms will last for
months. Sometimes they will bloom repeatedly from lower nodes on the
inflorescence, but if the entire thing is brown and dry, it's time to cut it
off as close to the base as practical, continue watering and fertilizing,
watch new roots and leaves grow, and wait for the next inflorescence.
Some of the new roots, BTW, may be exuberantly aerial, which is OK, and
will be thick and grey, with pointy green tips, which distinguishes them from
new inflorescences. As new leaves grow from the crown, the oldest leaves on
the plant will yellow and drop off.
There are some orchids which will bloom more often, or even serially
from the same inflorescence. Get hold of the Ortho book of orchid growing,
and check with a commercial grower or the orchid society in your area for the
best possibilities, if you're interested.
Good luck.

Tom
Walnut Creek, CA
Nikon CP 5700

Groovy, So I think I will snip em as close to the base as possible.
and wait. One of them has been a "stick" now for for nearly a year.
I guess if I am reading this correctly, it may be up to a year after
the curring that a new inflorescence will start to grow. I guess I
should have been on this board a while back!

On an unrelated note, this artist often has beautiful (georgia okeefe
- esque) pictures of orchids available. Various price points... As
gorgeous as they are, they I got more joy from my plants when they
were in bloom.

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQgotopage...sortpropertyZ1

Thank you

Todd, if your new to orchids, Phals. are the way to go. Tell us
more about how your taking care of them. You know like how much light
they're getting, what medium they're growing in and are you dumping the
water trays underneath them. Phals. are easy to grow once you get the
correct info. on them. People here are real smart and helpful. Keep us
posted------newbie here as well. ......Burr

Todd, if your new to orchids, Phals. are the way to go. Tell us
more about how your taking care of them. You know like how much light
they're getting, what medium they're growing in and are you dumping the
water trays underneath them. Phals. are easy to grow once you get the
correct info. on them. People here are real smart and helpful. Keep us
posted------newbie here as well. ......Burr