New phrag dropped a flower!

[Noah Arthur]

I got this Phrag. Calurum a week ago, and it seemed to be doing well until today, when it dropped a perfectly healthy flower... What did I do wrong?

I got it from a nursery with a very warm greenhouse, and brought it home to a cooler house. The indoor temps are well within the acceptable range for phrags, but quite a bit cooler than what it had in the greenhouse... Could that be why it’s losing flowers? Or could it be from insufficient light? (I think the light might be a little low in the house.)

 

[Paphluvr]

Probably perfectly normal depending on how long it had been in bloom. Paphs and Phrags frequently loose their flowers when they look perfectly fine but the flower will fade by the next day. It looks like you still have more buds on that scape so you'll have more to enjoy.

 

[Noah Arthur]

Thanks Paphluvr! Yea it might have been in bloom for a long time at the nursery before I got it. And it does have another bud coming up!

 

[mrhappyrotter]

Yeah, basically every Phrag is going to work this way. Nearly all of them are sequential bloomers (there are exceptions of course), and nearly every bloom is going to look perfectly healthy, plump, and happy when it plummets off the spike. Every once in awhile, I've seen the flowers hold on longer than normal and start to wither while on the spike, but that's nearly always explained by the flower having been pollinated.

 

[CarlG]

Just take some cyanoacrylate cement and glue that flower back on. Don't tell anyone!

 

[silence882]

Their habit of dropping flowers in perfect condition is one of many infuriating things about Phrags. But they're great anyway.

 

[abax]

Perhaps the fleeting beauty of flowers is why we appreciate
them so much. Be philosophical and look forward to the
new flower.

 

[Linus_Cello]

You could try pollinating the flower. Supposedly some people do that to keep the flower to stay on the plant, especially right before a show.

 

[NYEric]

That's crazy because it will make the bloom mishapen.

 

[Noah Arthur]

Thanks everyone! It seems this flower was just ready to drop. The second flower (which was already open by the time the first one dropped) is still on the plant and looking beautiful (see photo) And a new bud is swelling up above it! I love this plant; the prize of my small (so far...) collection!