Do Phals hibernate?

[theheights73]

Hello all,

I have has my miniature phal since June of which time I had bought it in bloom. Iv repotted it and replaced the medium. Spike shriveled, leaves dried up butt since then the phal has grown 3 new leaves.
the 3 new leaves seem to be slowly making progress.... very very slowly. Not sure what to make of this. Im in New York and the winter is upon us ,days are shorter . Do these plants hibernate?

Thanks!!

[jsehorn]

Plants don't hibernate, they go dormant. Phals don't have a well-defined rest period like some orchids. Growth may slow in the winter due to shorter day length, but it won't stop entirely.

If your plant is growing well but not blooming, too little light may be the cause. Also, if the plant was weakened as you said it was, it may take a while for it to recover and be healthy enough to bloom.

[theheights73]

Hey Jeff,

Im not sure how to tell if its growing okay or if its getting enough light. The leaves look like they are trying to grow bigger/longer. when I take a peek at the roots , they seem to be healthy (hearty looking , deep green color) but are not growing as much as i would expect .
How do I know if the plant is getting enough light ?

[jsehorn]

The leaves should be a medium green color. Dark green leaves indicate too little light.

[kmarch]

Originally Posted by theheights73

Do Phals hibernate?

Phals neither hibernate nor do they go dormant. They are constant growers. They may slow down from time to time or if the culture isn't just right but they don't go dormant. Read the phalaenopsis culture sheet on this forum in the Orchid Care section or read the one from the AOS (American Orchid Society). A culture sheet will tell you what conditions (light, heat, water, etc) your phalaenopsis needs.

[lmartiny]

Many will only bloom once per year. Or twice. Most of mine are starting spikes now. But they grow outside most of the year.

[1joyceh]

Hi theheights73!
maybe you could post a pic for us to see?
good to see you on the forum

[theheights73]

Hello kmarch

Thanks for your response. So I looked up the info sheet and it says "A phal’s leaves should be olive green. If they are darker it means the plant is not getting enough light; red tinged leaves mean the plant is getting too much light."

My little phal leaves are def darker than an olive green and and is what looks like to me red tinged at least at the edges. I see some redness/darkness underneath the leaves and along the edges of the leaves.

little confused here

not sure what else to try ... goin to try to up load some photos

[theheights73]

Hey Joyce !

Yes Im goin to try to get those pics up

[Hummer344]

Since your plant was bought in bloom it might take awhile for it to acclamate to your growing conditions & bloom again. Be patient. Also, phals take a day night temp change of 10-15 degrees in order to set spikes. Growing them indoors usually doesn't give them that change.

[JLu]

Animals hibernate, plants are in some cases deciduous. It might be argued that some humans are dormant, though neither hibernating or going deciduous

Actually Phals in the subgenera Aphyllae, Parishianae, and Proboscidioides are adapted to cool and dry Himalayan winters and go deciduous in nature. I'm not sure how well these plants do in a home environment where they fail to chill and probably are not allowed to go dry. In the greenhouse these plants do lose leaves and in some cases go completely leafless. The GH temps are maintained at 60 F minimum. These species include braceana,hainanensis, honghenensis, minus, appendiculata, lobbii, parishii, ands several others. These are among the more difficult to grow species in cultivation.

[Reg22]

It doesn't sound like there is anything wrong with your phal. Mine only bloom once or twice a year. Both the indoor and outdoor phals bloom. The indoor ones get a temperature difference of only 7-8 degrees from day to night everyday. If you want constant blooms, buy more orchids!