I want to repot it because it didn't bloom the last two years. When I repot into aged Fir bark, should I cut these dry "bulbs" off? leave them? I found an old box of Fritted Trace Elements in my basement. Do you think I should sprinkle a tiny bit on the fir bark when I repot?
you can cut the old bulbs off as long as you leave at least 2 left, these are the back-up energy supplies for the plant. also with the elements i'd say stick with what you know, if you change something it might kill the orchid.
OK, glad I asked. I will leave 2 of the dry ones and carefully cut the rest of the mess away. Odd that something dried and shrivelled up can provide energy...ha ha. I was hoping for some blossoms...but I'll not risk using the FTE then. Thank you for this very quick reply.
to help it blossom more, or have better blossoms try using an orchid fertilizer high in potassium, this will help produce more and better blooms
I'm learning a lot...I thought flowers came from fertilizers high in phosphorus. I will indeed make a note that the orchid needs high potassium fertilizer in late summer. Thanks for this great advice...no wonder I had no flowers!
also where is your orchid located? they need alot of sun to have enough energy to produce flowers, at least 6 hours of sunlight a day. the best indication that the plant isn't getting enough sunlight is that the leaves are a very dark green. it may look really nice but the plants leaves shouldn't be as dark, they should be a green-gold colour.
My, my, the learning continues! Yes, mine are dark green. It's in a south-facing window all winter, outside on the patio with the rest of my "jungle" from April to September. On the patio, it receives only morning sun. In winter, there's not much sunshine in the Okanagan (otherwise we'd be -40C on many nights). Green-gold colour. It was that colour a few years ago, and I thought it needed nitrogen (looked chlorotic). Oh dear! thanks ever so much, orchidboy, for this lesson. Now I've got it!
if you want to learn more try googeling orchid care, or cymbidium care, this will teach you everything you need to know. try this website http://www.tesselaar.net.au/growingguides/cymbidium_orchids.asp
