SWMBO was given a Tesco's Phalaenopis orchid in flower last August.
Flowers lasted till about January, but now I'm wondering what to do.

This tip of the main stem where is flowered has turned light brown and
looks as if it is dying. A branch stem about 3/4 way up also flowerd,
but still is blackish and looks healthy.

There is one small bud about one inch along the spur, and a good sized
bud on the main stem below where the branch comes out.

Should I prune back and if so to which bud, and how close down to the
bud. Thanks


--
Roger T

700 ft up in Mid-Wales

Roger Tonkin wrote:
SWMBO was given a Tesco's Phalaenopis orchid in flower last August.
Flowers lasted till about January, but now I'm wondering what to do.

This tip of the main stem where is flowered has turned light brown and
looks as if it is dying. A branch stem about 3/4 way up also flowerd,
but still is blackish and looks healthy.

There is one small bud about one inch along the spur, and a good sized
bud on the main stem below where the branch comes out.

Should I prune back and if so to which bud, and how close down to the
bud. Thanks

The rule that I have always followed for orchids is:

* when it finishes flowering, cut back the stem as far back as possible
- will take longer to flower again, but will flower better than if

* ... cut back stem to just above a notch - will flower again sooner

If you still have buds, I would suggest cuttnig back the spent stem to the
nearest notch to where the branching occurs.

In article ,
says...

Roger Tonkin wrote:
SWMBO was given a Tesco's Phalaenopis orchid in flower last August.
Flowers lasted till about January, but now I'm wondering what to do.

This tip of the main stem where is flowered has turned light brown and
looks as if it is dying. A branch stem about 3/4 way up also flowerd,
but still is blackish and looks healthy.

There is one small bud about one inch along the spur, and a good sized
bud on the main stem below where the branch comes out.

Should I prune back and if so to which bud, and how close down to the
bud. Thanks

The rule that I have always followed for orchids is:

* when it finishes flowering, cut back the stem as far back as possible
- will take longer to flower again, but will flower better than if

* ... cut back stem to just above a notch - will flower again sooner

If you still have buds, I would suggest cuttnig back the spent stem to the
nearest notch to where the branching occurs.

Sorry if I am a bit confusing. By buds I meant small triangular pieces
on the stem. Not quite sure if that is what you mean by notches? Should
I cut below the branch or above?

--
Roger T

700 ft up in Mid-Wales

On 29/03/2011 16:51, Roger Tonkin wrote:
In ,
says...

Roger wrote:
SWMBO was given a Tesco's Phalaenopis orchid in flower last August.
Flowers lasted till about January, but now I'm wondering what to do.

This tip of the main stem where is flowered has turned light brown and
looks as if it is dying. A branch stem about 3/4 way up also flowerd,
but still is blackish and looks healthy.

There is one small bud about one inch along the spur, and a good sized
bud on the main stem below where the branch comes out.

Should I prune back and if so to which bud, and how close down to the
bud. Thanks

The rule that I have always followed for orchids is:

* when it finishes flowering, cut back the stem as far back as possible
- will take longer to flower again, but will flower better than if

* ... cut back stem to just above a notch - will flower again sooner

If you still have buds, I would suggest cuttnig back the spent stem to the
nearest notch to where the branching occurs.

Sorry if I am a bit confusing. By buds I meant small triangular pieces
on the stem. Not quite sure if that is what you mean by notches? Should
I cut below the branch or above?

If in doubt do nowt is not a bad maxim. The plant will flower again if
you keep watering it with rainwater and the odd bit of orchid feed.

If you cut the flowering stem back to just above one of the nodes there
is a good chance it will stimulate earlier flowering but a smaller stem
of flowers. I generally leave the old flowering stems to dry out
naturally and remove them only when a new stem develops.

Regards,
Martin Brown

"Roger Tonkin" wrote ...

SWMBO was given a Tesco's Phalaenopis orchid in flower last August.
Flowers lasted till about January, but now I'm wondering what to do.

This tip of the main stem where is flowered has turned light brown and
looks as if it is dying. A branch stem about 3/4 way up also flowerd,
but still is blackish and looks healthy.

There is one small bud about one inch along the spur, and a good sized
bud on the main stem below where the branch comes out.

Should I prune back and if so to which bud, and how close down to the
bud. Thanks

......................................

They will flower again from old flower stems as long as the stems are still
alive, cut any brown dead bits back to just above a node (bud?) and wait and
see.
One word of warning is that some (especially the white ones IME) can flower
themselves to death so if the plants looks anything other than in rude
health cut the flower spike off completely and let the plant build itself up
again before it throws up another flower spike or two.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
W.of London. UK

On Tue, 29 Mar 2011 23:03:52 +0100, "Bob Hobden"
wrote:



"Roger Tonkin" wrote ...

SWMBO was given a Tesco's Phalaenopis orchid in flower last August.
Flowers lasted till about January, but now I'm wondering what to do.

This tip of the main stem where is flowered has turned light brown and
looks as if it is dying. A branch stem about 3/4 way up also flowerd,
but still is blackish and looks healthy.

There is one small bud about one inch along the spur, and a good sized
bud on the main stem below where the branch comes out.

Should I prune back and if so to which bud, and how close down to the
bud. Thanks

.....................................

They will flower again from old flower stems as long as the stems are still
alive, cut any brown dead bits back to just above a node (bud?) and wait and
see.
One word of warning is that some (especially the white ones IME) can flower
themselves to death so if the plants looks anything other than in rude
health cut the flower spike off completely and let the plant build itself up
again before it throws up another flower spike or two.

I've been given advice here before about my Phalaenopis, not white!
I've had it for years without flowers. It's made new leaves but no
flowers.
I don't feed very often, but if so it's orchid feed.
Lower leaves have been dying off.
I decided to repot.
There were quite a few aerial roots but no roots in the compost, so
I cut off the dead stem and repotted in orchid compost, putting the
aerial roots down into the compost.
I've obviously been overwatering. I'll see what happens now!-
I don't like giving up!

Pam in Bristol

"Pam Moore" wrote...

Bob Hobden"wrote:
"Roger Tonkin" wrote ...

SWMBO was given a Tesco's Phalaenopis orchid in flower last August.
Flowers lasted till about January, but now I'm wondering what to do.

This tip of the main stem where is flowered has turned light brown and
looks as if it is dying. A branch stem about 3/4 way up also flowerd,
but still is blackish and looks healthy.

There is one small bud about one inch along the spur, and a good sized
bud on the main stem below where the branch comes out.

Should I prune back and if so to which bud, and how close down to the
bud. Thanks

.....................................

They will flower again from old flower stems as long as the stems are still
alive, cut any brown dead bits back to just above a node (bud?) and wait
and
see.
One word of warning is that some (especially the white ones IME) can flower
themselves to death so if the plants looks anything other than in rude
health cut the flower spike off completely and let the plant build itself
up
again before it throws up another flower spike or two.

I've been given advice here before about my Phalaenopis, not white!
I've had it for years without flowers. It's made new leaves but no
flowers.
I don't feed very often, but if so it's orchid feed.
Lower leaves have been dying off.
I decided to repot.
There were quite a few aerial roots but no roots in the compost, so
I cut off the dead stem and repotted in orchid compost, putting the
aerial roots down into the compost.
I've obviously been overwatering. I'll see what happens now!-
I don't like giving up!

.....................................

Phals respond to temperature changes with regard to flowering so if you
usually keep it in the same place all the time perhaps a move to somewhere
else (cooler or warmer) will spur it into flowering. They also like more
light than often mentioned, if there is too much light they will simply go
red in leaf so plants getting enough light usually have a ruddy tinge to the
leaves. Personally I would not have put all the aerial roots in the compost
but left a couple out.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
W.of London. UK

Pam Moore wrote:
I don't like giving up!

Do you have a nice draft-free north facing window to keep it on?
I've found putting it out of the way and forgetting to water for weeks at a
time is the way to bump them into rebellious flowering.

On 31 Mar 2011 22:37:15 GMT, wrote:

I've found putting it out of the way and forgetting to water for weeks at a
time is the way to bump them into rebellious flowering.

I'm going to try that!
Thanks

Pam in Bristol

On Thu, 31 Mar 2011 17:09:25 +0100, "Bob Hobden"
wrote:

Personally I would not have put all the aerial roots in the compost
but left a couple out.

I've looked and there are 2 new aerial roots growing just above the
compost so therre's still hope. I've moved it to my bathroom,

Another question:
I have a cymbidium which was in flower about 10 years ago and has
never flowered since. However, it was a sickly thing, but now,
despite having been repotted twice, it is filling the pot.
No sign of flower stems. Would NOW be a good time to split and repot
it? As with the other one, I feed them seldom, and only with orchid
feed.

Pam in Bristol

Martin wrote:
I've found putting it out of the way and forgetting to water for weeks at a
time is the way to bump them into rebellious flowering.

I'm going to try that!

We do the same keeping the orchids out of the sun and inside the
house. So far they have all flowered again and again.

I seem to have accidentally hit open the perfect way of getting my orchids
to go a bit mad. It may be coincidence.

Normally they all lived on the living room (north facing) window, and got a
bit forgotten about. Apart from the non-phalaenopsis one (not a cymbidium
or cambria, cos I have killed all of those off) which specifically said it
wanted direct sun.

Then I got a bit annoyed with them and kept forgetting to water them. So I
moved the non-flowering ones to a trough on the (also north facing) upstairs
bathroom window, and kind of ignored them. It was generally warm and damp
in there, but they didn't get watered often. But now and then I would dunk
them in the still quite hot bath water before emptying it.

Now every time I move a not-flowering-any-more orchid to the bathroom it
starts flowering within a couple of weeks and I have to move it back to
another window sill! (I've got a dark pink, a light pink, a white and a
yellow on the go atm, plus the south facing one, which is covered in lilac
coloured flowers!)

"Pam Moore" wrote

"Bob Hobden"wrote:

Personally I would not have put all the aerial roots in the compost
but left a couple out.

I've looked and there are 2 new aerial roots growing just above the
compost so therre's still hope. I've moved it to my bathroom,

Another question:
I have a cymbidium which was in flower about 10 years ago and has
never flowered since. However, it was a sickly thing, but now,
despite having been repotted twice, it is filling the pot.
No sign of flower stems. Would NOW be a good time to split and repot
it? As with the other one, I feed them seldom, and only with orchid
feed.

...............................

Again with Cymbidiums temperature is the key, they need cool nights to
initiate flower spikes which is why they are best left outside all summer
and into the autumn (in an open aspect but shaded from the sun type place)
until it gets near frosty, perhaps late September, when they can be taken
into a cool but frost free room/greenhouse. Do not forget, as I did one
year, and leave them out to get frosted!
Cymbidiums also seem to need more feed than other orchids, a friend used his
wormery liquid to feed his and they flowered superbly. Chicken poo pellets
work well too.
Some are just coming into flower so I wouldn't repot now, indeed unless it's
growing outside it's pot I wouldn't anyway. Wait 'till the early summer when
it's growing away well.
If you get no flowers this year then feed well all summer and in late August
give it a couple of feeds of half strength Tomato feed, but don't keep it
too warm. Don't forget to flush the compost through every other watering to
avoid the build-up of salts.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
W.of London. UK