Phrag won't rebloom

[phrag_girl_WI]

Hey all - I'm new here but not new to phrags. I've been growing for +/- 6 years now and have had orchids for +10 yrs. Most of what I have has rebloomed for me and I have around 100 orchids total.

I have a large phrag Chuck Acker that refuses to rebloom for me. Its getting slightly less light that catts and has gorgeous huge growth (this plant is seriously huge). It is not growing standing in water but is watered twice weekly and fertilized weekly.

It hates me. I bought it in bloom 2 years ago and it just won't rebloom. It has 3 large new growths that are blooming size, new growth emerging and is about 4" tall. The plant itself has 8-9 large growths. I'm hoping among hopes its getting ready for flowering now but am not holding out too much hope.

Conditions are:

Winter: south facing exposure with light shading (a sheer curtain); daytime temps 75-80 (when sunny) and night temps around 65. watered as above. In the summer, it lives outside under shade cloth, watered more often, fert weekly. It grows like a weed but never flowers

SADNESS!!!

 

[Shiva]

Scare the living daylight out of the plant. Change something in the frequency of watering or feeding. Give it some cooler temps. More light, especially in winter. It would be helpful to know approximately where you live. Good luck, and if all else fails, I'll be glad to take it if you live in Canada.

 

[NYEric]

Welcome from NYC! How many growths was it when it bloomed the first time?

 

[phrag_girl_WI]

Scare the living daylight out of the plant. Change something in the frequency of watering or feeding. Give it some cooler temps. More light, especially in winter. It would be helpful to know approximately where you live. Good luck, and if all else fails, I'll be glad to take it if you live in Canada.

I live in Wisconsin (Madison). Chuck has advised me that what I'm doing should be productive ... and it is for all other plants ... just not this one.

Cooler temps during the day or at night? (or both?)

 

[phrag_girl_WI]

Welcome from NYC! How many growths was it when it bloomed the first time?

It had 3 huge growths. Now it has a billion. Ok, 8 or 9, I'll have to double check.

 

[Shiva]

I live in Wisconsin (Madison). Chuck has advised me that what I'm doing should be productive ... and it is for all other plants ... just not this one.

Cooler temps during the day or at night? (or both?)

Cooler at night. Try around 10C or 50F if possible for a couple of weeks at least. It seems to me the plant has to be shocked enough to want to reproduce. You could put it outside early in the spring when the weather is above freezing. But remember to bring it in otherwise.

 

[NYEric]

If it's multiplying vegitatively you're doing fine. You just have to find the secret to getting it to flower. cooler temp, more light, etc..

 

[L I Jane]

You say you fertilize weekly. How much? It could be too much fertilizer causing the plant to put out new growth.

 

[SlipperFan]

Some people swear by using about a teaspoon of Epsom Salts instead of fertilizer about once a month.

I'd certainly try the temperature drop at night.

 

[SlipperKing]

Yeap, 65 is too warm in the winter

 

[John M]

Yeap, 65 is too warm in the winter

Bingo!

 

[joan]

Perhaps you should try growing it in a dish of rain water. Thought they were picky about water quality. I use MSU fertilizer for pure water in the rain water.

 

[phrag_girl_WI]

Thanks for the answers and suggestions.

How does a home grower get the temp below 65 in the winter and stay warm themselves? I turn the thermostat down to 64 at night and with the plant in question being near the window (which is old and inefficient), I figure its a bit colder yet. Do I give up on blooming this one during the spring and just let it do its thing outside in the warm weather months?

Also Joan, in the summer, the majority of my orchids get only rain water ... trickier in the winter ... maybe I need to go back to buying R/O for a while to flush out the plants?

 

[Eric Muehlbauer]

It looks very similar to Schroderae. It may also behave like Schroderae...mine blooms irregularly. It may bloom 2 or more years or so in a row, then skip up to several years between blooms. Grows well all the time though....

 

[cnycharles]

Thanks for the answers and suggestions.

How does a home grower get the temp below 65 in the winter and stay warm themselves? I turn the thermostat down to 64 at night and with the plant in question being near the window (which is old and inefficient), I figure its a bit colder yet. Do I give up on blooming this one during the spring and just let it do its thing outside in the warm weather months?

If it is temperature related and you would like it to get a bit cooler, you could just drape some plastic or curtain material from one side of the window, around the plant and back to the other side of the window (so that there is a pocket of cooler air trapped near the plant and keeping the warmer air away from the plant. Wouldn't hurt to have a max/min thermometer there just to make sure it doesn't get too cold...

Also Joan, in the summer, the majority of my orchids get only rain water ... trickier in the winter ... maybe I need to go back to buying R/O for a while to flush out the plants?

if wisconsin is like upstate ny, i'm sure there is plenty of snow that could be melted

 

[goldenrose]

You say you fertilize weekly. How much? It could be too much fertilizer causing the plant to put out new growth.

I'd agree with this.

If it is temperature related and you would like it to get a bit cooler, you could just drape some plastic or curtain material from one side of the window, around the plant and back to the other side of the window (so that there is a pocket of cooler air trapped near the plant and keeping the warmer air away from the plant. Wouldn't hurt to have a max/min thermometer there just to make sure it doesn't get too cold...



if wisconsin is like upstate ny, i'm sure there is plenty of snow that could be melted

Wonderful ideas! I save rainwater in my basement, garbage cans work just fine! Collect in late fall & during any thaws.

 

[Yoyo_Jo]

I melt snow in two garbage cans in our heated garage and in a five gallon bucket in our mudroom. I usually dilute it 50/50 with tap water. When I run out of snow melt, I use purchased R/O, and again dilute it 50/50. The TDS of our tap water ranged from 147 - 302 mg/L in 2008.

 

[Chuck]

In my experience light is often the issue for non blooming phrags. I'd give it as much light as it will take. Strive for a light green color in the leaves. Dropping the night temp may help as well.

 

[smartie2000]

Usually more light does it for me. Try to aim for a medium to light green foliage.

Plants with caudatum types in it can take more light

now that I think of it...I need to move some plants around Full power artificial sunlight on my phrags, some of them get as much as what I'd give to my catts if there is room