Phal buds looking wierd

[Sara]

My new Phal has some buds that are looking really wierd.

The bud in the back right is fine, a normal healthy green. But the three in the foreground have turned an odd pinkish color.
What's going on?

[kmarch]

Well, I've got some good news and some bad news. First the bad news: your buds are "blasting." "Blasting" means that they've stopped developing and are going to drop off. Bud blast can be caused by several things: a change in conditions (like bring an orchid home form the store), a draft or change in conditions inthe home (like moving from outdoors to indoors or from one room to a different one), a problem with culture (too warm or cool, to wet or dry), or from root loss or disease.

Now the good news: The majority of the time, it is nothing to worry about and plants will rebloom normally on their next cycle. It is also possible that you'll loose a few buds but the rest will develope normally.

Get a good culture sheet like the one on this forum or those found at American Orchid Society so you know what conditins your orchid likes. After it is finished blooming you'll probably wantto repot and you can check the roots at that time to see if they are healthy.

Let us know if you have other questions.

Happy Orchid Growing New Year!

[joan gero]

I hate those buds that don't complete themselves, after waiting a whole year. But is the term "blasted" official (or semi-official)? I mean, would folks who are not on this forum know what we're talking about, if we talked about "those blasted buds"?