how long till new flowers on phal?

[tabcat]

hi
i had a lovely phal last July, bloomed for 4 months, cut back to the topmost bud thing and although the leaves are growing, i am feeding and watering well, there is no sign of any new growth other than the leaves. how long does a phal take to regenerate? or should i give up?
thanks in advance, tabcat

[tclover]

Use keiki paste at nodes and you may get new flower stalks or a keiki. You can also cut flower stalks (few inches above and below node) and grow in soil. Cheers.

[kid a]

It just depends. I know that doesn't help much. It could respike from the original spike below where you cut it or could wait until next season to bloom.

[psyc1210]

Originally Posted by tclover

Use keiki paste at nodes and you may get new flower stalks or a keiki. You can also cut flower stalks (few inches above and below node) and grow in soil. Cheers.

What kind of soil are you saying to grow the Phal in?

[psyc1210]

It may take a while for it to rebloom. Mine seem to grow new leaves and roots, and then send out a spike later...but then again another of mine didn't wait very long at all to send out a whole new spike, all while growing two new leaves, and roots at the same time. Just be patient

[janet_a]

depends on the plant. some put out a stalk once a year, and that's it. some are *always* in bloom. has to do with its breeding.

as for flower spikes in soil--well, theoretically you can stem prop from spikes, but only if they haven't bloomed.

[jerrymeola]

Phals normally bloom only once a year.

Phals bloom with the cooling temperatures of winter. It takes a 20 degree drop in temperatures from day to night to inniate flowers.

Since you bought your Phal in July, which is not the normal blooming season, it was artificially cooled to bloom. Now it is out of cycle and may take 18 months to re-bloom. Cooling the plant again will not inniate blooms as the plant has not had enough time to recover from the last blooms.

[bkim]

Personally, a blooming orchid is just icing on the cake of the entire experience of growing orchids. I find the development of the foliage fascinating. Instead of forcing it in anyway to respike / rebloom, I suggest following the plants lead and promote whatever it wants to do. If it's growing, promote good plant and root growth so the next time it decides to spike, you'll get a nice healthy spike.

[kid a]

I love seeing the foliage develop, and roots too!

[tabcat]

Originally Posted by psyc1210

What kind of soil are you saying to grow the Phal in?

hi
i am using a mix that i bought from a garden centre which seems to be mostly coconut bark!

cheers,

[JLu]

"Phals bloom with the cooling temperatures of winter. It takes a 20 degree drop in temperatures from day to night to inniate flowers.

Since you bought your Phal in July, which is not the normal blooming season,....."

Jerry, could you elaborate on these statements? The reason I ask is that in my experience there are many spring and summer blooming Phals. The 20 degree delta (if it's F) is more than most Phals experience in their normal habitat. It is more like 8-13 degrees. I don't see how you can predict the bloom time for a NOID hybrid.

I'm not saying you are wrong, I would just like to understand it better.

[tclover]

After cutting just below the flower, if the plant is strong enough it may give you the second bloom. Use keiki to force the second bloom and may be third. After blooming, what you do you do with flower stalks? Cut them and throw in trash. There are some nodes left on the stalk that you can put in to soil (potting soil is good enough) and may get new plants. Can not put link. Google for "orchid lotte". Look into "node culture" -> "node culture in soil" you will see how to do it. Cheers