I will assume that your plants are healthy with lots of new leafy green growths and good roots. If you don't have a healthy plant, don't expect it to flower! If you're not getting blooms AND your plants are healthy, read on. Here are the main reasons orchid will not bloom and what you can do about it. One or more reasons may apply to your orchid plants: #1. GIVE YOUR ORCHIDS ENOUGH LIGHT Skylights, unless you live in Arizona, or unless they are about five feet above the plants generally do not provide sufficient light, for all but the most shade-loving of orchids. Please don't email me and tell me your orchids do fine under your skylight-perhaps they do but I need to make some broad generalizations here ;) Remember also that while a few paltry blooms on an orchid may be nice , our goal here is to get our orchids to put on a good show, and to make your investment of time and money worthwhile. How do you know if your plants are getting enough light? As a general rule look at the foliage. It should be a light grassy green. Lush dark green foliage is nice to look at, but it means your plants are not getting enough light. Leaves should also be turgid and firm on phals, cattleyas, and dendrobiums. Mottled leaved paphs should show good color contrast on the leaves- see our paphiopedilum culture pagefor more details. If your plants are not getting enough light move them closer to the window. Yes, even a foot can make a huge difference as light falls off very rapidly within increasing distance from a window. During the summer months place plants outdoors in dappled shade if you can. Whenever you move plants into brighter conditions always do so very gradually as you risk burning the leaves. Lastly, remember to only grow plants suited to your conditions to avoid disappointment. I just saw some beautiful vandas in bloom at the grocery store! Vandas are very difficult to grow in the home and sadly most will end up in the trash heap.
Most flowering house plants, orchids included, will not bloom if they are not getting enough light. This is generally the main reason that orchids do not bloom. Northern exposure is usually not sufficient. A bright western, slightly shaded in the hottest months, or eastern exposure work well. A southern exposure gives you the greatest flexibility. If your window is heavily shaded by trees or adjacent buildings, this will reduce light to your plants and you will have to make adjustments accordingly. If you have bright indirect light, your phals and paphs should do fine. Oncidiums generally need slightly brighter light. Dendrobiums and Cattleyas need the brightest light of all, and do best in a Southern exposure. Find out more about light requirements for growing orchids indoors
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Orchid Flowers
Vanilla Orchids
Vanilla (genus)
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2009) |
| Vanilla orchids Fossil range: Early Cretaceous - Recent 109–0 Ma | |
|---|---|
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| Flat-leaved Vanilla (Vanilla planifolia) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Monocots |
| Order: | Asparagales |
| Family: | Orchidaceae |
| Subfamily: | Vanilloideae |
| Tribe: | Vanilleae |
| Subtribe: | Vanillinae |
| Genus: | Vanilla Plumier ex Mill., 1754 |
| Species | |
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| Green: Distribution of Vanilla species | |
Vanilla, the vanilla orchids, form a flowering plant genus of about 110 species in the orchid family(Orchidaceae). The most widely known member is the Flat-leaved Vanilla (V. planifolia), from which commercial vanilla flavoring is derived. It is the only orchid widely used for industrial purposes (in the food industry and in the cosmetic industry). Another species often grown commercially but not on an industrial scale is the Pompona Vanilla (V. pompona). This evergreen genus occurs worldwide in tropical and subtropical regions, from tropical America to tropical Asia, New Guinea and West Africa. It was known to the Aztecs for its flavoring qualities. The genus was established in 1754 by Plumier, based on J. Miller. The name came from the Spanish word "vainilla", diminutive form of "vaina" (meaning "sheath"), which is in turn derived from Latin "vagina".
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This genus of vine-like plants has a monopodial climbing habitus. They can form long thin stems with a length of more than 35 m, with alternate leaves spread along their length. The short, oblong, dark green leaves of Vanilla are thick and leathery, even fleshy in some species. But there are also a significant number of species that have their leaves reduced to scales or have become nearly or totally leafless and appear to use their green climbing stems forphotosynthesis. Long and strong aerial roots grow from each node. The racemose inflorescences short-lived flowers arise successively on short peduncles from the leaf axils or scales. There may be up to 100 flowers on a single raceme, but usually no more than 20. The flowers are quite large and attractive with white, green, greenish yellow or cream colors. The flowers' sepals and petals are similar. The lip is tubular-shaped and surrounds the long, bristly column, opening up, as the bell of a trumpet, at its apex. The anther is at the top of the column and hangs over the stigma, separated by the rostellum. Most Vanilla flowers have a sweet scent. Blooming occurs only when the flowers are fully grown. Each flower opens up in the morning and closes late in the afternoon on the same day, never to re-open. If pollination has not occurred meanwhile, it will be shed. The flowers are self-fertile but need pollinators to perform this task. The flowers are presumed to be pollinated by stingless bees (e.g. Melipona) and certain hummingbirds, which visit the flowers primarily for nectar. But hand pollination is the most reliable method in commercially grown Vanilla. The fruit is termed "vanilla bean", though true beans are fabaceaen eudicots not at all closely related to orchids. Rather, the vanilla fruit is technically an elongate, fleshy and later dehiscent capsule 10-20 cm long. It ripens gradually for 8 to 9 months after flowering, eventually turning black in color and giving off a strong aroma. Each pod contains thousands of minute seeds, but it is the pod that is used to create vanilla flavoring. Vanilla species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species, such as the wooly bear moths Hypercompe eridanus and H. icasia. Vanillaplantations require some sort of tree planting for the orchids to climb up on; off-season or when abandoned, they may serve as habitat for animals of open forest, e.g. on the Comoros for Robert Mertens' Day Gecko (Phelsuma robertmertensi). The taxonomy of the genus Vanilla is unclear.[1] This is a partial list of species or synonyms:[edit]Description
[edit]Species
.jpg)
 Unidentified Vanilla species. |
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Untitled
Phalaenopsis
| Phalaenopsis | |
|---|---|
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| Closeup of a Phalaenopsis flower | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Monocots |
| Order: | Asparagales |
| Family: | Orchidaceae |
| Subfamily: | Epidendroideae |
| Tribe: | Vandeae |
| Subtribe: | Aeridinae |
| Alliance: | Phalaenopsis Blume |
| Genus: | Phalaenopsis Blume 1825 |
| Type species | |
| Phalaenopsis amabilis Blume, (1825) | |
| Species | |
| see text. | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Phalaenopsis Blume (1825), abbreviated Phal in the horticultural trade,[1] is an orchid genus of approximately 60 species. Phalaenopsis is one of the most popular orchids in the trade, through the development of many artificial hybrids.
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The generic name means "Phalaen[a]-like" and is probably a reference to the genus Phalaena, the name given byCarolus Linnaeus to a group of large moths; the flowers of some species supposedly resemble moths in flight. For this reason, the species are sometimes called Moth orchids. They are native throughout southeast Asia from the Himalayan mountains to the islands of Polillo, Palawan andZamboanga del Norte in the island of Mindanao in the Philippines and northern Australia. Orchid Island of Taiwan is named after this genus. Little recent information about their habitat and their ecology in nature is available since little field research has been done in the last decades. Most are epiphytic shade plants; a few are lithophytes. In the wild, some species grow below the canopies of moist and humid lowland forests, protected against direct sunlight; others grow in seasonally dry or cool environments. The species have adapted individually to these three habitats. Possessing neither pseudobulbs nor rhizome, Phalaenopsis shows a monopodial growth habit: an erect growing stem produces one or two alternate, thick, fleshy, elliptical leaves a year from the top while the older, basal leaves drop off at the same rate. If very healthy, aPhalaenopsis plant can have up to ten or more leaves. Theinflorescence, either a raceme or panicle, appears from the stembetween the leaves. They bloom in their full glory for several weeks. If kept in the home, the flowers may last two to three months. Some Phalaenopsis species in Malaysia are known to use subtle weather cues to coordinate mass flowering. The species can be classified into two groups : In terms of Raunkiær plant lifeform terminology, these plants are epiphytes. Based on DNA-evidence, the genera Doritis Lindl. and Kingidium P.F.Hunt are now included in Phalaenopsis, according to the World Checklist of Monocotyledons, Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew) (See also ref 1). However not every specialist in this field accepts these taxonomic changes. Intensive cross-fertilization has produced a great number of hybrids in all colors and variations. These are usually more adaptable to artificial conditions than their botanical ancestors. Many are hybrids of Phalaenopsis amabilis,Phalaenopsis schilleriana or Phalaenopsis stuartiana.[edit]Description
[edit]Classification
[edit]Species
