PHALAENOPSIS HEALTH AND SPIKES

I spotted several things today on inspection of my Moth Orchids otherwise known as Phalaenopsis.

As mentioned previously I have a largish number of hybrids and slightly less of species though the latter are only seedlings right now they should flower next year.

The following are 7 photos of 4 Phalaenopsis and I have taken the pictures in such a way that I can show any growers out there TWO things to watch out for.

Firstly, and the most important, is how I tell the HEALTH and water nutrient storage that each of my Phalaenopsis holds internally. I say internally as they do not have pseudobulbs like other Orchids they have something that almost resembles one and it is this that I focus upon.

In the picture below you will notice the base of the leaf and the plant and that it is side on. If it looks swollen as it does in the photo then this has had ample water and nutrients, a point I will come back to in a moment. You might note from the photos the leaves look firm and shiny too. Well an under nourished and under watered Phalaenopsis will have a much thinner base (remember to look sideways on at it) and the leaves will look dull and even slightly wrinkled. They will also feel floppy if you hold the tips gently and raise up and down a little.

So shiny leaves and plump bases.

You may note a small triangular protuberance just above the root on the left side of the base, THIS is a flower spike. When they first appear they look pointed, green and flat, as opposed to a new root which is fat and rounded with only the tip green.

Here you can see the base looks plump. Now this one is either white with big purple blotches looking as if sprayed on dye. Or the flowers are yellow but with the same big purple blotches. I lost track of which one is which?!

I think as the plants surface as looking 'tight' and lush. Once you get used to that look you will know when the plant is not getting enough water. Obviously this is less of a worry on cooler winter days. Oddly it is on the onset of these cooler days that Phalaenopsis spark of producing flower spikes, hence I took these shots this morning!

A new ROOT and a SPIKE. Be very COOL to get back to knowing which one is which colour again?! LOL.

A different Phalaenopsis that has not flowered for two years or more. Spike is the top most protuberance in photo and the root bottom most pushing up against dried section of plant leaf.

One that, surprisingly, flowered this year and around 6 months ago, Pelloric flowered type, that is now also surprisingly sending out not one but TWO flower spikes! Cream with purple blotches are the colour of the flowers on this one.

Flowers on this are a deep win red edged with cream.

This is a strange hybrid with very big, long and wide, leaves that look twice the size of all the usual sized ones?! You will note at the base of the bottom most leaf nearest the camera that there is the beginnings of a spike! This one has also not flowered for two to three years.

Now I pointed out that three of the above four Orchids have not flowered for awhile! This is because though I kept them alive easily enough I knew that up until this year I was not giving them enough of what they needed. But I knew this last year, see one of my other BLOGS as to why. Well this year I decided I was going to get all my Orchids to flower and focus on giving them the right water, humidity, light levels and the two separate feeds in the right quantities (grow and bloom feed).

I had not expected them to start spiking for another four weeks! So this is good. As one has two spikes on it and is the furthest along as far as development of the spikes in concerned it will be interesting to see in a few days if any of the others produce more than one spike.

Also of note is that these are all planted in quite large bark chips. This way I can water once or twice a day and they wont harm them with over watering. Just remember the roots need to BREATHE, literally s they wont take sitting too long in water.

But this also varies.

Also the bark breaks down by the time its been there two years and becomes like compost, so chuck that away and use new chips, trust me on that one!!

Be interesting to see if my two miniature Phalaenopsis hybrids start to spike.

There are several others, again I cannot remember the colours or even which plant produces which flowers, that is how long ago since they flowered last.

Rest assured on two things first off I rarely buy anything that has a plain flower and secondly PINK is almost non existent amongst my Orchids save for a tiny miniature hybrid that has spotted leaves. This was because you could have any colour you liked ... as long as it was PINK?! GROAN!! LOL.

Tomorrow morning I will water them well again and then after an hour I will check for any more spikes and the other hybrids especially!

Will take photos and post in stages now they are beginning to spike. My Podangis dactyloceras is also going a bit nuts and that may well be spiking too and possibly branching out with a new plant. take pictures of that in stages too.