Growing Orchids Successfully
Tips and tricks to get your orchid to rebloom.
Orchids go through a resting phase called dormancy after blooming. Dormancy typically lasts for six to nine months but may vary from plant to plant. Providing your orchid with quality care during its dormant phase will help ensure that your orchid reblooms again.
Remove all clips and stakes.
If the flower stem is still green, cut it 1 inch above the first node below the lowest flower bloom.
If the flower stem is turning brown, cut the stem off at its base. Phalaenopsis orchids will not flower on brown stems.
If your orchid has a double spike, cut one stem 1 inch above the first node below the lowest flower bloom, and the other off at its base.
Your orchid is now dormant and will stay this way until new blooms appear. Water sparingly, but be sure your orchid does not dry out. Give it a rest period and after a month or two, most species of orchids benefit from a complete fertilizer once per month. Phalaenopsis orchids can be fertilized twice per month. Provide your orchid with lots of indirect sunlight.
Tips for reblooming:
Temperature:
The best way to trigger flowering is to mimic the temperature swings of an orchid's native habitat.
Place Phalaenopsis in a cooler spot at night (12 to 18 degrees Celsius). Cymbidiums will benefit from temperatures down to 4.4 degrees Celsius to trigger reblooming.
Orchids are most likely to bloom when grown in the temperature they prefer. Some orchids are considered warm growers, intermediate growers, or cool growers.
Choose orchids that best suit your growing conditions. For most people, warm and intermediate growing conditions can be met in a typical home environment.
Fertilizer:
If you’ve waited patiently, and still see no new bloom, switch from a balanced fertilizer to a higher phosphorus fertilizer to promote flowering for a couple of feeds.
Light:
If the orchid leaves are dark green, it may not be getting enough light to rebloom. Medium to light green leaves indicate sufficient light levels.
If the light is too strong, hang a sheer curtain in the window.
If light is too weak, supplement with artificial LED or fluorescent light.
Learn your orchids growth cycles:
There are 4 stages that orchids experience: leaf growth, flowering, root growth, and dormancy.
Phalaenopsis orchids can rebloom every few months, but most others will bloom annually.
Choose a species that reblooms easily. Our tops five picks are:
Phalaenopsis
Phalaenopsis-type Dendrobiums
Miniature Cymbidiums
Oncidiums
Zygopetalums
Once your orchid breaks the dormant cycle, the new bloom will initially look like an upward-growing root. Once the flower spike appears you can move your orchid back to its original warmer growing location. You can begin to water more regularly now. Feed the plant with a weekly dose of diluted fertilizer until it is finished blooming. When the flower stem is 5 inches long the stem should be loosely tied and staked. Enjoy the blooms. Then it is time to start the cycle all over again.