Sharry Baby didn't bloom

[jsehorn]

I have an Onc. Sharry Baby that I've had for years and has always bloomed with almost no effort (just water and fertilizer). When I lived in Oklahoma, it would usually strike flower spikes in September or so and would be in full bloom around Thanksgiving. It has always flowered profusely (I grow my plants outdoors in the summer and inside during the winter), sometimes with up to a dozen spikes.

I now live in Portland, Oregon. This year's new growths aren't quite as large and robust as usual and not a single of them spiked. I feel like it got plenty of light, the leaves are the proper color and such, so I don't feel like it was too little light.

However, we barely had a summer last year in Portland. We had rain and temperatures in the 50s until the first of July, so I put it outside later than usual. I also wonder if perhaps the shock of moving from Oklahoma to a drastically different climate may have had an effect.

What do y'all think? Does the plant just need time to adjust to Portland weather? Shock from moving? Not enough summery weather? I have a few other oncidium intergenerics, some of which are in bloom now and some of which are starting to grow spikes, but my Sharry Baby has always been the plant I can rely on to consistently put on an amazing show every year, and this year, nothing at all. Any thoughts?

[kmarch]

I think you've actually probably described pretty accurately why the plant isn't performing up to par. The move alone could be reason enough but that combined with a cool summer, not getting it outside like you usually do, etc., all of those things can slow a plant down and hold the flowering back somewhat. I'd recommend continuing to do what you know works and be patient. It may well produce better next year.

[jsehorn]

Thanks kmarch! I figured that was probably the case. In the OP I forgot to mention that I repotted it after it was finished blooming last year, but before I found out I was moving. Repotting has never bothered it before, but I've never repotted it, moved it halfway across the country, and made it live in a place where summer is a myth and 70 degrees is considered sweltering... all in one year, haha.

I'll just keep on treating it like I always have and hope it works out better this year. I hear the last year's short, cold summer is highly unusual, so hopefully this one will be better. The new growths are at least coming along nicely at the moment, so that seems promising. Last year when new growths started, I could already tell that they looked a little scrawny. I bet it'll be back on track this year.

Thanks much!

[jsehorn]

Oh, and part of the purpose of this post that I failed to make clear is why is it my Sharry Baby, which is possibly my most reliable plant, that took the move so hard, when my other oncidiums and onc. intergenerics for the most part bloomed normally (I did notice an interesting thing, the bloom time for all of my plants was a little later by about two months than usual. Again, I attribute this to the climate).

I even have a plant which I believe to be a Beallara that has always been hit and miss. I bought it in a plastic bag at Lowe's (it was just labeled "Oncidium" although it is obviously an intergeneric and I firmly believe it to be a Beallara), and it was practically dead when I got it (I think they let me have it for like two bucks, or something like that) and it actually recovered. It grows vigorously, but it has a tendency to bloom just whenever the mood strikes it. Sometimes it will go a year or more without blooming, and sometimes it strikes a new flower spike every month for several months in a row, and then just stops blooming, and there's no telling when it might bloom again. Throughout the course of its life, I believe it has at some point bloomed during every month of the year. At the moment, it's blooming like mad.

Sorry, I'm drawing this out more than I meant to. The point is that I just find it odd that Sharry Baby didn't bloom, but plants I've had trouble with in the past bloomed just fine.

[Filb]

Moral of the story, orchids are fickle beasts!

[mayres]

Hang in there - it WILL get used to Oregon eventually! Mine is getting ready to bloom in the next few weeks!

[Lady Tottington]

Originally Posted by Filb

Moral of the story, orchids are fickle beasts!

[11Orchid126]

Your Sharry Baby may need a tad more light than the others. She may be tempermental. After all, going from bright Oklahoma to gloomy Portland might be making her sulk a bit. She needs cheering up.

[Daethen]

If she needs cheering up, buy her an orchid!!

[katrina]

Originally Posted by Daethen

If she needs cheering up, buy her an orchid!!