Dear Orchid Doc:

The leaves of my Phalaenopsis look very much like someone took a nail and made small dents all over them, and they are starting to get crooked. Any blooms that appear are also very crooked. Can you diagnose the problem, please?

Jane

Dear Jane:

It sounds as if you have had that mite problem for some time now, and it has turned the plant crooked.

There is an insecticide called Cure that will surely cure the problem. You will need to spray once per week for four to six weeks.

After this you can spray it every two weeks.

Do follow the precautionary measures written on the bottle.

Dear Orchid Doc:

I was really looking forward to seeing my lovely Schomburgkia orchids bloom, but sadly all the buds are drying up before they have come to the blooming stage. I have waited over three years since they were babies, only to be confronted by this distressing situation. They have been sprayed with many different chemicals, but I just cannot get rid of the problem.

Please help.

Theresa

Dear Theresa:

Schomburgkia orchids are indeed a beautiful species. They take about the same amount of light as Dendrobiums.

I believe that your orchids may be suffering from mites and thrips.

Just as one medication cannot be used to treat every ailment in humans, the same is true of insects. Some insects are the sucking type, some are the biting type and some have to be killed on contact.

Against this background, please get a miticide at the farm store; a good one is Newmectin, and a general (not specific to a particular insect) is Caprid, which takes a bit longer to fix the problem, but which is less expensive.

Dear Orchid Doc:

I have had a few Cymbidiums for a long time now but they won’t bloom. What advice can you give me to help the situation? They look quite healthy otherwise and extremely fat with multiple bulbs.

Jennifer

Dear Jennifer:

The fact that your plants look quite healthy and have multiple shoots would suggest that you have the growing and fertilising aspect of it down pat.

However, I have to tell you that there are some Cymbidiums that refuse to bloom in the warmer climates, though there are some hybrid types that are more tolerant of the heat and will therefore bloom at a temperature of higher than 80 degrees.

The older types require a drop in temperature at nights of about 10 to 15 degrees before a spike will initiate; however, when they bloom they last a very long time. The hybrid types are usually very short.

So it might be a good idea to send the plants up to the cooler areas for at least 30 days during the blooming season, to initiate the buds.