What to Do After Phalaenopsis Orchid Flowers Fade? A Detailed Guide to the Reblooming Process
Who among flower lovers could resist the beauty of the Phalaenopsis orchid? Its flower shape has the nimble grace of a dancing butterfly, and no matter what your home style is, it can easily become the main potted plant. However, Phalaenopsis orchids are very expensive on the market, and it would be a real shame to throw them away after each blooming season ends, so what can you do to make the Phalaenopsis orchid bloom again and again? How can you get it to rebloom as quickly as possible after the blooming period ends? Follow along with the editor below to find out.
There are two methods for reblooming as quickly as possible. After the Phalaenopsis orchid's blooming period ends, you should cut off the faded flower spike as soon as possible, as this can reduce nutrient consumption. The first method is to trim the faded flower spike at the middle position between the 4th or 5th node counting from the very bottom of the flower spike, because there are usually hidden flower buds at the 4th or 5th node, and at this point you can spray some of the "rebloom spray" commonly found in flower markets, and in this way it will bloom again after 2~3 months. But the drawback of this approach is that the plant consumes too many nutrients, which is not good for the following year's growth. If you want it to produce beautiful flowers again around the Spring Festival the following year, you can adopt the second method.
Method two for getting the Phalaenopsis orchid to bloom again: cut it off leaving three centimeters from the base of the flower spike. Also remove all the sphagnum moss that has been used for more than a year and replace it with new moss, because sphagnum moss used for a long time tends to grow moldy, and its breathability is very poor. Continuing to use old sphagnum moss at this point can easily cause its root system to rot, weakening the overall growth of the plant, or even causing it to die outright. Then, observe the condition of the Phalaenopsis orchid's root system after removing the potting medium. If there are empty roots or rotten roots, all of them must be cleaned away.
In order to better disinfect the rotten areas, it is best to use a 1:1000 diluted disinfectant solution and soak for 10 minutes, then place it in a shaded area to air-dry for five or six hours. While it is air-drying, you can soak the new sphagnum moss. After the sphagnum moss has expanded, squeeze out the excess water, then fluff it up and it is ready to use. Finally, when filling the Phalaenopsis orchid with sphagnum moss, you can first form the moss into moss balls, then first fill the middle position between the Phalaenopsis orchid's roots, and then wrap and press tightly around the outer ring to fill it in. Put it back into the original pot used for growing the Phalaenopsis orchid, continue adding new sphagnum moss and press the edges tightly, until the sphagnum moss and root system in the flower pot are pressed tightly together in all three folds.