When you receive a gift or buy a beautiful orchid, it seems that its flowering will be constant. But then the moment comes when the last flower withers, the plant enters a state of dormancy, and the long-awaited buds do not appear, as expected, after a few months. What needs to be done for a beautiful orchid to bloom again with renewed vigor?
Conditions for flowering orchids
An orchid is a delicate and capricious creature, and sometimes, creating even the best conditions for it, it is impossible to determine the reasons for its bad mood and well-being.
There may be several reasons why the orchid does not bloom. Most often it is a complex of several factors that have arisen simultaneously
In addition, each specific type of orchid requires an individual approach. The main reasons for the absence of peduncles on all types of orchids are:
– lack of light or improper lighting; – insufficient or, conversely, excessive fertilization of the flower, which can stimulate the growth of green mass; – room temperature and humidity.
Lack of light or improper lighting
All orchids prefer bright but diffused sunlight. In nature, these flowers grow in the tropics, where daylight hours last much longer than in the middle and northern latitudes. At the same time, orchids grow on tree trunks and mountain slopes, which allows you to get bright light, while avoiding direct rays. Indeed, in natural conditions, the plant itself chooses a place to live, and is not content with those that are imposed on it.
Most orchids bloom in the fall and winter, just when there is not enough light. If there is a lack of natural light, it is recommended to illuminate the plant with special phytolamps, which provide bright diffused light without drying out the air. In modern apartments or orchid houses, oriental windows are the most optimal.
When grown on the southern and western windowsills, the plant will have to be shaded from the side of the direct rays of the sun.
The roots of the plant also take an active part in the process of photosynthesis of the orchid, so you should not plant the flower in a ceramic or any other opaque pot.
Glass or clear plastic containers with a smooth surface are ideal.
Orchid feeding
The formation of peduncles depends on how much nitrogen is in fertilizers for feeding. Excess nitrogen stimulates leaf growth and inhibits flowering. In order for the orchid to bloom, it is worth dramatically reducing the nitrogen components in fertilizers, replacing them with preparations with a high content of potassium and phosphorus, which will stimulate the formation of healthy peduncles. Such fertilizers are sold in stores that are called “for flowering indoor plants”.
There are also special dressings for blooming orchids of different types. It is categorically impossible to transplant an orchid during flowering or dormancy. This should be done immediately after the plant has bloomed, while taking into account the need for such a procedure, because the soil itself does not play a decisive role in the life of the plant.
Temperature and humidity
Orchids should be watered in both winter and summer as the roots and potting medium dry out, about 2-3 times a week, dipping the pot into a container of prepared water. At low humidity indoors, it is necessary to spray the flower with distilled water so that a white bloom does not form on the leaves.
During the flowering period, more frequent watering is recommended, while the flowers and the outlet should not be wet and sprayed. During dormancy, the plant should be watered no more than once every 10-12 days.
The orchid prefers a contrast of temperatures – lower at night and higher during the day. Unfortunately, this is not easy to achieve in a city apartment, therefore, ventilation without creating a draft is recommended during the heating season. In summer, the orchid feels great on the balcony or in the garden, where there is a natural day-night difference.
When stress is good
Sometimes, although all the recommendations and conditions for care are followed, the orchid is capricious and does not please with its magnificent flowers. In this case, she deserves a serious shake-up in the form of some kind of stress, for example, a decrease in temperature by 4-6 degrees, but not lower than 15-12 degrees, no more than once every two weeks. In this case, the daily daily temperature difference should be added – at night it is three degrees lower than during the day. This method can make an orchid bloom in 1–2 months.
Reducing watering also stimulates flowering. This is exactly the moment when it is allowed to rearrange the flower pot in a more shaded place, for example, on the northern windowsill. When an orchid is not happy with repeated flowering, it does not mean at all that this is due to poor care. Rather, on the contrary, having too good conditions for growth and excessive feeding, she is lazy to release flower stalks, and is gaining green mass.
An important role in whether the orchid will bloom again or not is played by the conditions of its dormancy. It is not recommended to greatly patronize the plant when its natural rhythms are slowed down, and excessive care and watering stimulate growth and deprive it of a well-deserved rest. The same happens in the natural environment of tropical countries, where orchids grow in nature: prolonged rains are replaced by periods of drought, when the flower falls asleep until the next period of rains. Understanding the conditions in which an orchid grows in nature, it is quite possible to achieve a lush annual flowering of a beautiful plant at home or in the office.
