A Detailed Guide to Post-Bloom Care Methods and Key Maintenance Points for Phalaenopsis Orchids
Post-bloom care for Phalaenopsis orchids is extremely important, as it has a direct impact on surviving the summer safely and blooming the following year. After years of practice, the author has summarized a set of post-bloom care methods, presented below:
1. Removing the flower spike: After all the flowers of the Phalaenopsis have faded, the flower spike should be promptly cut off from the base to reduce nutrient consumption. Some people keep the flower spike to let it bloom a second time; this method is highly inadvisable. This is because the probability of a second bloom is not high, and even if it does bloom, the quality is poor, with small flowers and few in number, and Phalaenopsis that bloom a second time have poor flowering quality the following year, or may even fail to bloom, so the flower spike should be cut off promptly.
2. Keeping warm: Not long after the Phalaenopsis finishes blooming, heating is turned off in northern regions, and tropical flowers are very sensitive to low temperatures, so they should be kept warm. Cover the flowers and pot with plastic film, withhold water and stop fertilizing, and place the film-covered pot in a bright spot indoors, using light to raise the temperature of the micro-environment.
3. Repotting early: Phalaenopsis should be repotted promptly after blooming, no later than mid-April. When repotting, knock the plant out of the pot, cut off dead roots, and remove the rotted substrate, but be careful not to damage the roots. Use broken pot shards or expanded clay pebbles to make a drainage layer at the bottom of the pot, and prepare a growing medium from coarse river sand, leaf mold and vermiculite at a ratio of 1:1:1, mixing in 15 to 25 grams of decomposed and fermented sesame paste residue and 10 grams of sulfur powder. Mixing in sulfur powder can, on the one hand, sterilize and disinfect the soil, and on the other hand, lower the pH. When repotting, be sure not to press the potting soil too hard, to prevent the roots from breaking and being damaged.
4. Watering wisely: Watering is crucial in the care of Phalaenopsis orchids. From the removal of the spike after blooming until before May Day, the potting soil should be kept moist, generally with one thorough watering per week. Too dry can easily cause the plant to die from water loss, while too wet can easily cause root rot from excess water. After May Day, water thoroughly once every four or five days, and you can also mist the leaves at noon when the temperature is high. Water in the north is highly alkaline, and long-term watering can easily cause the potting soil to become alkaline, so some ferrous sulfate should be applied appropriately about once a week.
5. Sufficient light: Providing sufficient light is very necessary in post-bloom care of Phalaenopsis orchids. Before mid-May, it can be placed in a spot with ample light; after mid-May, because temperatures gradually rise and ultraviolet radiation is stronger, direct strong light at noon should be avoided, and in summer it should be given half shade.
6. Preventing pests and diseases: Spring is a season when Phalaenopsis orchids are prone to pests and diseases. Common pests and diseases include leaf spot, soft rot of leaves, scale insects and aphids. If they occur, in addition to strengthening water and fertilizer management and ensuring good ventilation, leaf spot can be controlled with broad-spectrum fungicides such as chlorothalonil; soft rot should be treated differently, with bacterial soft rot controlled with a 1000-fold dilution of 72% agricultural streptomycin, and fungal soft rot controlled with chlorothalonil, carbendazim, thiophanate-methyl and the like. For scale insects and aphids, when few in number they can be hand-picked and killed; when numerous, a 1000-fold dilution of 40% omethoate emulsifiable concentrate can be used for control.