How can you determine the cause of orchid bud blasting and effectively prevent and treat it?

Orchid GrowingAll year round there are only 3 joys: plenty of new shoots in spring; plenty of flower buds in autumn; and plenty of blooms the following year. But we often find that some flower buds turn black, shrivel and drop as they grow. How can we preventorchidbud blasting?

Through years of practical observation in orchid growing, the author has found that orchid flower bud differentiation occurs during the maturation period of new shoots and lasts nearly 1 year. Generally, after a year of nutrient accumulation, the flower buds emerge from the soil. The flowering periods of different varieties differ,Cymbidium goeringii、Cymbidium faberi、Cymbidium sinense、Cymbidium kanran, Chun Jian,Lianbanorchids and others, after the flower buds emerge from the soil, undergo a relatively long process of growth, bud gestation and vernalization. This process lasts as short as five or six months, and as long as even 7 months.Four SeasonsOrchid, summerCymbidium kanranand others, from the emergence of flower buds from the soil to flowering, take a short time, as brief as about 20 days, or as long as 30 days to 40 days.

Whether a variety has a vernalization period or not, attention must be paid to the management of fertilizer, water and light during both the vegetative growth period and the reproductive growth period. There are many reasons for flower buds turning black, scorching and dropping dead, most of which are caused by excessive humidity, too much fertilizer, poor ventilation and other such factors. Generally, flower bud differentiation is enough to show that nutrition is sufficient, so there is no need to continue applying fertilizer at the roots; only foliar topdressing is needed. The so-called need to pay attention to fertilizer and water management during the flowering period to promote the flower buds to swell and grow to full size means paying attention to foliar topdressing. At the same time, during this period the temperature is relatively high, the orchid is still continuing to grow, and sterilization and disinfection should be strengthened. After the flower buds emerge from the soil, if you blindly apply fertilizer and water, and encounter high temperature, muggy heat, poor ventilation and other conditions, the flower buds will turn black, scorch and drop dead.

During the bud gestation period of the orchid, from the Start of Autumn to before the Winter Solstice, topdressing with phosphorus and potassium fertilizer should be strengthened to promote the flower buds to swell and grow to full size. Whether for sterilization and disinfection or for spraying dilute fertilizer, the interval should be 7 days to 10 days; it must not be too frequent or too concentrated, and the plant should be exposed to a suitable amount of sunlight, otherwise the flower buds will be damaged and the hearts will rot. In addition, attention should be paid to water control and fertilizer control before flowering. When the flower buds are small, water should be withheld once or twice, which is directly related to the quality of flowering later. If you are not in a hurry to participate in an orchid exhibition, do not deliberately adjust the temperature and humidity; let them open naturally.

During the vegetative growth period of new shoots, multi-element fertilizer based mainly on nitrogen fertilizer should be applied to promote the plants to grow strong and sturdy, achieve disease resistance and drought resistance, and ensure the conditions for flower bud growth. Therefore, whether the flower buds can bloom normally is inseparable from the earlier management.