Orchid not growing but not dying? Watch out, it may be a stunted shoot

Friends who have grown orchids have probably encountered this situation: after all the careful care, the orchid finally produced a new shoot, but during its slow growth, it stopped growing?! This surely makes flower lovers very disappointed. However, a stunted orchid shoot does not necessarily die right away, so this situation easily deceives everyone, and it is really hard to notice unless you observe often. Moreover, orchids that have had stunted shoots, even if they slowly grow later, are mostly deformed shoots, which affects the beauty of the orchid plant. So why do new orchid shoots stop growing? Let's take a look together with Xiaozhi below.

1. Poor environment

The quality of the orchid-growing environment can also affect the growth of new shoots. New shoots grow healthy and robust in a good orchid-growing environment, while in a poor orchid-growing environment they are prone to pests and diseases, stunted shoots, stunted buds and so on. Once a new shoot becomes stunted, even if it can resume normal growth after a while, it will affect the growth of the next generation of new shoots and become weaker and weaker. Therefore, improving the orchid-growing environment is one of the most effective methods.

Solution: Light is extremely important to the growth of orchid plants. With insufficient light, orchid plants become weak and leaves grow too long; with overly strong light, orchid leaves will be sunburned yellow or scorched, greatly reducing their ornamental value. Therefore, all kinds of orchids need to be placed in a semi-shaded environment. Cymbidium goeringii and Cymbidium faberi require slightly more light during their vigorous summer growth period; Cymbidium ensifolium needs basically unchanged light; while Cymbidium sinense needs a bit more sunlight.

2. Overly concentrated fertilizer

Excessive fertilization of orchids damages roots and scorches leaves. Many flower lovers have the habit of applying base fertilizer to orchids, mixing some fertilizer into the soil as base fertilizer when preparing the potting mix. Although this does not seem to matter, if the base fertilizer is too concentrated, it easily causes stunted shoots and even burns the shoots.

Solution: When potting orchids, base fertilizer must be applied according to the growth condition of the orchid. New shoots generally grow in seasons with lower temperatures, when little medicine and fertilizer are used. If fertilization is needed, be careful to apply thin fertilizer, once every 15 to 20 days on average.

3. Too much watering

If orchids are watered too much for a long time or are continuously exposed to rain, the soil air gaps become clogged, and the orchid roots are deprived of oxygen and soaked through by water for a long time, causing necrosis. Once the roots are damaged, it will certainly show on the leaves.

Solution: The growth of new shoots is a critical moment in orchid growth. While observing the changes of new shoots at different stages, observe the dryness and moisture of the potting medium on the surface, pay attention to controlling the amount of watering, and achieve "uneven drought and flood". In addition, place the orchid pot suspended so it can drain water quickly. Otherwise, water easily accumulates at the bottom of the pot and rots the roots.

4. Aging potting medium

This situation is that after many years of care without repotting and replacing with new medium, the acid-base and nutrient balance in the potting medium is disturbed, leading to a lack of nutrients in the orchid, which directly affects the root's nutrient absorption, thus causing the new shoot to become stunted.

Solution: At the appropriate time, repot the plant and trim the roots, and promptly replace the potting medium with nutrients.

5. Competition for nutrients

If, during the growth of an orchid shoot, a new shoot or strong shoot stronger than it emerges, the strong shoot will snatch nutrients from the mother plant, and over time the new shoot will grow into a stunted bud. A stunted bud formed in this way basically cannot grow up.

Xiaozhi's summary

The most important method is prevention in advance! First, provide the orchid mother plant with all kinds of growing conditions and environment. If the orchid mother plant can grow robustly again, then the stunted bud may regain new vitality. If it really is an incurable condition, it is advisable to be ruthless early: cut off the stunted bud, then treat the wound, and finally apply multi-bacterial powder to the wound.