Leaves growing on old flower stem

[Jgray12]

My Phalaenopsis Orchid quit blooming in Feb 08. It had bloomed since Dec 07. I cut back the stem in Mar 08 to about 15 inches high from the base of the plant but apparently that wasn't enough. Now I have what appears to be a pair of leaves growing from the stem about 12 inches above the base. I thought new blooms would appear on the stem but to my amazement they are leaves. Now what do I do? I have 4 big leaves at the base. Two appear to be thinning and drying out where the top pair are still green. I was trying to get it to bloom again.

[kmarch]

Originally Posted by Jgray12

Now what do I do?

Easy, nothing. If you leave it as it is, it ill eventually grow some roots and once you have 2-3 roots that are 2-3 inches long you can cut this baby plant off (often called a "keiki" which is Hawaiian for "baby") and pot it up.

Originally Posted by Jgray12

I have 4 big leaves at the base. Two appear to be thinning and drying out where the top pair are still green.

This concerns me a little. Phals never have a lot of leaves but if you have only 4 and 2 of them are dying there may be a problem with the roots. Have you repotted it? It might be worth checking the roots to see if they are healthy (firm and crisp) or rotted (mushy).

[Jgray12]

I have noticed some roots are dried out when I just watered the plant and I have a couple of green shoots. Shall I cut back the dried ones that appear dead? I have been watering the plant with Shultz fertilizer the past few times about every 10 days and I recover it with moss when the plant was fully saturated and drained. Then I put it back in the pot. I got this plant as a Christmas present and I have no experience at caring for Phals. Although I am desperately trying to keep it alive and florishing. I have had no success since the blooms left it in Feb to get it to rebloom and I was thrilled when I saw the Keiki and thought it was a bloom. I appreciate all the advice that you and given me and need all the simple advice I can get to care for this plant.

[kmarch]

I advise not to cut any roots off unless they are mushy or unless they give easily and come off when gently tugged. Dehydrated roots can come back. Perhaps you could consider leaving the moss off as this will allow the excess water to dry away more quickly.

Check out the culture sheet for Phals on this forum or from the AOS at AOS | Home.

[Jgray12]

Thanks for your response and taking the time to give me advice. I did go to AOS as you recommended and thought I would share the advice I got from there in response to some of my questions: "Starting with the keiki, three 3" roots may be too much, and risk breakage during potting. I usually recommend 3" or 4" of total root length for removal and potting them up. Another thing I've found useful is to bend the spike over and secure the little plant to the surface of another pot of medium (spike clips anchor the spike to the pot edge well). That way it can still rely on its "mother's" resources while it gets established. Once it has, clip the spike and the plant's on its own.

I also recommend against trying to "force" a plant to rebloom by cutting the spike. it usually results in fewer- and smaller blossoms and can really weaken the plant. Personally, I leave the spent spikes alone. If they have the energy to rebloom, they do. If not, they don't. If you don't like the looks of it, remove it completely.

No fertilizer is going to "cause" more- or sooner blooms. Orchids have very specific cultural needs and requirements in order to bloom. You DO want to feed the plant regularly with a complete fertilizer so the plant grows well.

In the case of a phalaenopsis, they tend to grow well vegetatively when kept warm, but will initiate a new inflorescence better when exposed to a few weeks of cooler overall temperatures - about 10° to 15°F lower in average. For a home grower, that happens naturally in the autumn when temperatures start to drop and the plant is grown near a window. Six to eight weeks later, a new spike forms, and then it grows, forms buds and blooms in the winter (as yours did).

If you have done a good job of growing it since its last flowering, the plant will be robust, so will give you more, bigger, and better blooms, and they will last even longer. I have had phals stay in bloom for 9 months!"