In stores, we often see beautiful, profusely blooming orchids. But waiting for re-flowering at home is not easy. What kind of care is required for epiphytes so that they constantly delight their owners with their beautiful views?
The fashion for giving flowers in pots instead of the usual flower arrangements is weakening a bit. However, almost all homes have one or two tropical plants.
Particularly attentive and meticulous housewives managed to make friends with whimsical epiphytes and achieve their almost continuous flowering.
Reasons for the lack of flowering
There are many reasons for the lack of buds in orchids. The main thing is to find and eliminate the factor interfering with flowering in time, and then your pet will be able to throw the arrow again and form buds.
Too young plant
The orchid begins to bloom at the age of one and a half to three years. Therefore, if you undertook to grow a sophisticated beauty from a sprout, please be patient. However, there are cases when a plant, being quite young, fired an arrow and began to bloom.
Pest infestation
The mealybug infects young buds, sucking out all the juices from them, this leads to their withering. Nematodes and scale insects also interfere with the healthy development of the flower.
Excess fertilizer
It is necessary to fertilize orchids during active vegetative development with special fertilizers intended for epiphytes. It must be remembered that universal top dressing for indoor plants is not suitable for orchids.
Excessively dry or cold air
Tropical plants love warm and humid air (about 25 ° C, with a relative humidity of no more than 80 percent).
During the heating season, daily spraying of plants or installing a special humidifier in the room will help solve the problem of dry air.
Plants perceive light coolness (at least 17 ° C) much more easily than excessive heat and drought. For example, phalaenopsis feels great at low temperatures, while in a dry climate it begins to throw off young buds and flowers.
Overwatering
Watering orchids should be rare, but generous. Allow the roots and substrate to dry out a little between waterings. For watering, use clean and slightly warm water.
Insufficient lighting
For normal growth, tropical beauties do not need a lot of light. An already flowering plant does not need intensive lighting. A plant with fully opened buds can safely decorate the darkest areas of the room.
How to make an orchid bloom
If your home has become an exotic paradise, and the orchids are still growing but not blooming, you need to think about radical ways to get the epiphyte to bloom.
There is an opinion that you should not blow off every speck of dust from the orchid, but, on the contrary, you need to take it out of the comfort zone, creating stressful conditions by reducing watering.
The interval between watering procedures should be doubled, bringing the plant to complete drying of the roots and substrate.
Also refrain from spraying and feeding the flower. Follow this regimen for about two months, then return to the previous watering pattern.
At first glance, it may seem that constantly blooming orchids is an elusive goal, in fact, everything is not so difficult. The main thing is to understand what exactly your flower likes.
By recognizing the desires of an orchid, you can easily learn to respond to its needs. And the orchid will certainly thank you with a beautiful and long flowering.
