Another San Antonian..

[dhill001]

I found this website while searching for what my Phal is doing. Over the last year it has produce 3 new leaves and several new roots. It appears to be very happy. It is nice to be here.

Leon

[Vincent]

Hi Leon - It's nice to see another San Antonio guy here. I have a few Phals also. A P. bellina, three P. violacea seedlings too small to flower yet, and a big old hybrid that my wife brought home from work. It was given to her because it wouldn't bloom. Hasn't bloomed for us either.

[desertgal]

Hi Leon.....welcome. Have you given your phal a cooling down period?
It won't bloom without one.

[dhill001]

Right now it is under a grow bulb. It gets approx. 10 hours under that and then it is off. How do I give it a cooling down period? I did not know about that. Please explain.

Thanks

[Vincent]

The growth of spikes and buds is initiated by two or three weeks of lower night temperatures ranging from of 50 to 55 degrees (but don’t go lower than 50). In San Antonio, you may achieve this by setting the plant outside overnight during the fall or by setting it on a window sill and opening the window overnight, depending on the weather and consistency of night temperatures.

Some Phals bloom with less trouble than others, and in general, hybrids are easier to bloom than species because some of the genetic-specific fussiness of the species gets diluted in cross breeding. So It may work with reduced night temperatures that are higher than 50 to 55. I used to have a hybrid Phal in a window sill that bloomed in the late fall with no special effort on my part to regulate temperatures. It just got a little cooler at night because it was at a window.