How do I get my phalaenopsis or doritaenopsis orchid to reflower?

I recieved this orchid from my grandfather's funeral one year ago. I did not know at the time that I was supposed to cut off the stem after the flowers all died. I haven't seen a flower since last winter. Is that normal? Now the old stem has a new green shoot growing out of one of the nodes, but, still no flower. Should I be cutting off the stems at the bottom or wait to see if it will flower? Please help! I have no idea what to do and I would really like to see the pretty white flowers again.

P.S. I have it narrowed down to a phalaenopsis or doritaenopsis orchid - is there a huge difference?

Thank you so much for your help!!! :)

How do I get my phalaenopsis or doritaenopsis orchid to reflower?
I can't easily tell you which of these 2 orchids that you have, without seeing it, but doritaenopsis are crosses between Phalaenopsis and Doritis, and are quite similar to Phalaenopsis.



They benefit from good indirect light levels and can suffer from scorching with direct sun. To initiate flowering, place your plant near to a windowsill - or on it, if free from direct sunlight and drafts. East facing windows, in the northern hemisphere are ideal. 62 to 65 degrees minimum temperature at night and 70 to 80 degrees during the daytime. It's important to get a difference between the day and night temperatures, to encourage flowering.



Aim to get good humidity levels, from around 50% - which you can do by placing some pebbles into a saucer, with some water, which will evaporate. I usually place this adjacent to my orchids, as they don't like to stand in water.



I don't fertilize mine that often, usually once a month or so. You can buy specialist orchid feed. If you use a feed with higher Phosphorous in the fall/winter, this will encourage buds to form. Though fertilizing does not need to be so frequent during these months, due to less growth being made.



When my flowers drop from my Phalaenopsis, I always wait for the stem to die back, as they frequently sprout side shoots with even more flowers, so I don't think that you have caused any problems: you may have gotten lucky, with more flowers. Sometimes the green shoots that you see at the base become aerial roots which in nature, would help anchor the orchid onto a tree, or its growing position - as well as helping to collect humidity. Don't cut these off.



It seems likely that the stems that you see growing out are also possible flower stems. You may just need to wait and see on this, and if the overall conditions are good, then you will get some flowers. I wouldn't cut them off, until they started to die.



I water my orchids by immersing in some room temperature water for just a few minutes, every other week or so. I let them nearly dry out between waterings. Clean rain water is good, as chemicals in tap water can shock them. The Phalaenopsis orchids can rot if left in water for too long a period.



Don't worry about not having seen flowers this year - they often start to initiate flower buds in the fall, so you may get very lucky through this winter.



Hope these thoughts help. Good luck! Rob
Reply:Most orchids are slow growers and only bloom once a year. Phalenopsis and Doritaenopsis orchids are excellent house plants since they can thrive under typical home conditions. Their flowers can last for months.



Your orchid must have grown at least a new pair of leaves this year and must be getting ready to bloom again. Just be patient. The spike can take 2 months to develop new flower buds. Don't cut anything just now.



In any case I suggest you research the culture notes available from the American Orchid Society. They will guide you on how to care for your orchid in your particular growing conditions.

Toothache