Once an orchid has blossomed, displaying its beautifully exotic flowers, it will go into a dormant cycle. Some orchids have a shorter dormant cycle while others need a little longer time to recover. Orchid dormancy starts after the last flower has fallen off the flower spike and can look very different in every species. Some hardly have any signs; others look half-dead.
1) How do I know my orchid is dead?
To know if your orchid is still breathing, first research your specific orchid species. Have a knowledged-based comparison, before you judge your orchid’s fate.
Longer dormant periods will have a more drastic effect on the orchid.
After verifying that your orchid’s dormant cycle is short, yet it’s been a long time since your orchid has spruced back to life, then it might be on a dying path.
Signs that verify that the orchid is dead in shorter dormancy-orchids by:
(1) all the leaves have fallen off,
(2) roots are non-existent or decayed,
and (3) severe crown discoloration.
2) Do all the Leaves Drop During Dormancy?
Catesetums, Cycnoches, Dendrobiums (some, not all) and Lycastes all drop their leaves during dormancy. If your orchid isn’t a species that drops its leaves, except your orchid has, then your orchid is probably dead.
n the other hand, if your orchid is a species that doesn’t drop its leaves, but still doesn’t seem to be growing, it could be that it isn’t dormant, but suffering. Pests and insects bothering the growth cycle are the number one cause (after death, that is) for sudden leaf drop.
3) Why is it Important to Repot during Dormancy
Root rot may have settled in a dying orchid, leaving the orchid to suffer. After the orchid has stopped blossoming and the flowers have all fallen off, you need to repot your orchid. This is the best time to do so, before roots start growing.While you’re repotting, verify the roots carefully. Any old, mushy, brown roots need to be cut off. Look for white spots that could indicate fungus and insects. If the orchid has suffered significant damage to the root system, it might be on its way to heaven.
It’s still salvageable, so don’t fret. Just check out a repotting guide with less-absorbent potting medium to get your orchid in better conditions.
4) Is Crown Rot Normal During Dormancy?
Even though your orchid has dropped its leaves (and this behavior is normal for its species) you need to know if it’s still alive. Observing the crown is a good way to verify.
Crown rot can appear in black smudges on the stem of the orchid. This is extremely hard to cure and common during dormancy because people overwater. If it’s too severe, there might not be a way to salvage it.
Crown rot is never normal, but unfortunately, it’s common during dormancy. The orchid isn’t thirsty during dormancy and excess water leads to root rot.
The crown should always be light green, and not yellowish-green. It should also be firm to the touch, and not mushy. Dormancy can turn the crown a slighter yellow color. This only indicates that the orchid is saving minerals and nutrients for next year, and not using them.
5) Do All Orchids Respond to Dormancy the Same Way?
Each orchid species is different, but they all have a dormant cycle, even if it’s tiny. I have seen articles saying Phalaenopsis orchids don’t have dormant periods, but I disagree. It’s just smaller—much, much, smaller.
Image Credit: “[Venezuela] Cattleya percivaliana fma. aurea ‘Gabriela’ (Rchb.f.) O’Brien Gard. Chron., n.s., 20: 404 (1883)” by sunoochi is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Some orchids will just lose their flower spike, but the leaves will appear to not have changed. Others, lose all their leaves and panic strikes in the new orchid hobbyist.
Research is fundamental.
It used to be easy to know if the orchid was dormant, since all species would flower during spring, and go into dormancy during winter. With the hybridization of species, especially Phalaenopsis orchids, now bloom year-round. If you purchase blooming Phals at different times of the year, you’ll need to make a mental note of when is the right “dormancy” period for each.
Which one is going dormant and which one is dead—and why does that even matter? Orchid care changes when orchids are in dormancy. Each orchid responds differently to dormant cycles. Please, please, please…do extra research, more than what I have written in this article, on your orchid species to know how to better care for your orchid. Look for articles like this one, which teaches about Cattleya Care.
6) How Long do Orchids Live?
Another good tip to establish if your orchid died, first you need to know how long they live. In some cases, the orchid might look like it died, but is actually alive and surprisingly healthy.
Unfortunately, this is usually the time when gifted orchids find their way into the trash (Christmas gifts, Mother’s Day gifts, etc…) They also get the fame that they’re hard to care for, since they bloomed then “suddenly died.”
In their natural habitat attached to tress, orchids can live up to 100 years. In our living rooms and home offices, they may make it up to 20, but not more than that.
If you’ve just purchased and orchid at a grocery store or supermarket, then it’s probably around 3 to 4 years old and this is the 1st or 2nd time it’s been in bloom. In greenhouses and nurseries, you can find older plants. Even so, it’s very unlikely that your orchid you recently purchased is reaching the 20-year mark.
7) How do I Care for Dormant Orchids That Look Half-dead?
If your orchid came from a drier climate with two distinct seasons, a dry one and a humid one, and not a tropical rainforest, then it will most likely drop its leaves when winter approaches.
In a dormant cycle, the pseudobulb will start to shrink to about a ⅓ its normal size. All the pseudobulbs will do this, and not just one or another. If you find abnormal shrinkage, your orchid may by calling out for help.
Once you have done your research, and verified that your orchid is indeed, a dormant, leaf-shedding, pseudobulb-shrinking orchid, then your set to go. How do you care for an orchid that is dormant? Halt the watering, halt the fertilization completely, and drop the temperatures and lighting. Let’s look at each one of these separately.
1. Halt the Watering.
You’ll need to slow down on watering around mid-fall and completely halt all watering during winter. Mist the orchid roots once every four to five days, which will simulate the fog and haze of early morning in these areas.In Brazil, there’s a distinct period of dryness lasting up to 4 months, which humidity levels drop close to desert levels. Schools were often closed due to low humidity.
You might be wondering why I mention Brazil all the time…
Check out the about page to find out why.
I’d grow my dormant orchids by misting them in the morning, but never watering. I’d water the others frequently, to avoid dying—especially the mounted ones.
Dormant orchids actually prefer this weather to recuperate and store energy for the next year’s growth. So, don’t be scared that just a misting will provide for their needs, because it will. You won’t dehydrate them.
On the other hand, if you continue to water the same way you’ve always watered your orchid, then you’ll be inducing severe root rot. The water won’t be absorbed, sitting in puddles of bacteria-inviting water.
2. Halt the Fertilization
When an orchid goes dormant, it will need less water and less fertilizer. Some species prefer to suspend water after all their leaves have fallen off, enjoying the dry spell for up to a month. It is extremely easy to overwater an orchid during the dormant stages, encouraging root and crown rot.
Another viewpoint on fertilization is that without water, you don’t need to be fertilizing. In a growth-cycle, before applying fertilizer, you first need to water your plant. Always fertilize after the roots have absorbed the unfertilized water that they need.
Since you aren’t watering during dormancy, the roots would be absorbing pure fertilizer. This will only cause severe root burn. Your orchid won’t respond to fertilizer anyway, so save your money and halt the fertilization until you observe new root growth.
3. Drop the Temperatures
You’ll need to lower the temperature a few degrees, if possible. Cool temperature induce dormancy. Even if your orchid has a one-week dormancy period, like Phalaenopsis, these cooler temperatures induce a new flower spike.
So, either way—long dormancy or short dormancy—you win.
8) How do I Induce a Dormancy Period?
In nature, the orchid will go dormant after it has had time to blossom and sensing the changes in nature. As explained before, dormancy coincides with a drop in temperature, (not much, but a few degrees), shorter days (shorter periods exposed to sunlight) and less rain.
If you’re growing orchids indoors, like I am, you’ll need to induce a dormancy period that simulates winter. Dendrobiums will shed all their leaves and desperately need of the change of temperatures (not all—check your species). Phalaenopsis will enjoy the crisper nights and less hours of full sunlight.
If you keep on watering, providing same temperature, and same sunlight, your orchid may not bloom. Actually, maintaining the same temperature is the number one reason most people’s orchids don’t rebloom. You need to induce the orchid to go dormant after blooming by regulating—or tweaking, as the newer generation calls it—some essential factors.
To recreate this indoors, you’ll need to keep the artificial lights on only 12-14 hours instead of 14-16 hours a day. Less light simulates the shorter days in winter.
You can halt all fertilization, since the watering will be reduced to misting. These orchids are used to dry spells.
Turn your thermostat off in during winter nights, (if this is possible in your area) so that during the winter months, the temperature will drop at night.
In the arid desert-like areas, humidity at night is still high and it can get cold. If possible, keep lower temperatures during the day, never lower than 65ºF (again, check your specific species). But definitely drop them at night by 10ºF.
Maintain high humidity, and keep the fans on.
Hopefully, your orchid is just taking a long nap and not knocking on heaven’s gates. After reading this article, you should be able know if your orchid is dead or dormant, how to induce a dormancy period, and what to expect during dormancy.
Don’t Stop Learning!
If you want to be included in more information and get a 14-page fertilization guide, please sign up for my newsletter. I don’t spam, but send emails out bi-monthly with some curious topics of interest. If you want more information, click here to go to a specific page on this website where I explain it more in detail.
Also, if you are looking for an orchid journal to keep your notes specifically about orchid care, check out my 2 solutions for that on this page. If note-keeping isn’t your thing, then there is a free excel spreadsheet that you can download. Click here for more information on how to do that.
If you subscribe to my newsletter, I will send you a 14-page guide on the main tips of orchid fertilizer. It is downloadable and you can print it out on your computer. I designed the guide to double up as a coloring book, just to make it fun.
If it was helpful, please send me a comment in the section below. What is your preferred method of watering during dormancy and how do you know if your orchid had hit the dust?
Mara tu okidi inapofungua maua yake maridadi na ya kigeni, inaanza kuzunguka-zunguka. Baadhi ya okidi huwa na mzunguko mfupi zaidi wa usingizi huku nyingine zikitumia muda mrefu zaidi kupona. Orchid inapoanza kutulia baada ya maua ya mwisho kuanguka kutoka kwenye spike ya maua na inaweza kuonekana tofauti sana katika kila spishi. Baadhi yao hawana dalili zozote; wengine huonekana kuwa wamekufa nusu. 1) Ninajuaje kwamba okidi yangu imekufa? Ili kujua kama okidi yako bado inapumua, kwanza tafuta aina fulani ya okidi. Kuwa na kulinganisha msingi wa maarifa, kabla ya kuhukumu hatima ya orchid yako. Kipindi kirefu cha usingizi kitakuwa na matokeo mabaya zaidi kwa okidi. Baada ya kuthibitisha kwamba mzunguko wako wa kulala ni mfupi, lakini ni muda mrefu tangu orchid yako imerudi kwenye maisha, basi inaweza kuwa kwenye njia ya kufa. Alama za kufa kwa orchid ni: (1) majani yote yameanguka, (2) mizizi haipo au imeharibika, na (3) rangi ya taji imepungua. 2) Je, Majani Yote Hupungua Wakati wa Usingizi? Catesetums, Cycnoches, Dendrobiums (baada ya baadhi, si wote) na Lycastes wote kuacha majani yao wakati wa usingizi. Kama orchid yako si spishi ambayo kushuka majani yake, isipokuwa orchid yako ina, basi orchid yako pengine ni wafu. N upande mwingine, kama orchid yako ni spishi ambayo haina kuacha majani yake, lakini bado haionekani kuwa kukua, inaweza kuwa kwamba si dormant, lakini mateso. Wadudu na wadudu wanaosumbua mzunguko wa ukuzi ni kisababishi cha kwanza (baada ya kifo, yaani) cha kuanguka kwa majani ghafula. 3) Kwa nini ni Muhimu Kupanda Mti Mpya Wakati wa Usingizi Huenda kuoza kwa Mizizi kukawa kumeweka katika okidi inayokufa, ikiacha okidi hiyo ikiteseka. Baada ya ua la okidi kuacha kuchanua maua, unapaswa kuondoa ua hilo. Hii ni wakati bora wa kufanya hivyo, kabla ya mizizi kuanza kukua. Wakati wewe ni repotting, kuthibitisha mizizi kwa uangalifu. Mizizi yoyote ya zamani, yenye rangi ya kahawia inahitaji kukatwa. Tafuta madoa meupe yanayoweza kuonyesha kuvu na wadudu. Ikiwa mti huo umeharibiwa sana katika mizizi yake, huenda ukawa unaelekea mbinguni. Bado inaweza kuokolewa, kwa hiyo usijali. Kwa mfano, unaweza kutumia njia ya repotting, ambayo ni njia ya kuingiza maji katika chungu cha orchid. Je, Uharibifu wa Taji ni wa Kawaida Wakati wa Usingizi? Hata ingawa okidi yako imepoteza majani yake (na tabia hii ni ya kawaida kwa spishi yake) unahitaji kujua kama bado iko hai. Kuchunguza taji ni njia nzuri ya kuthibitisha. Uharibifu wa taji waweza kuonekana katika madoa meusi kwenye shina la okidi. Hii ni vigumu sana kutibu na ni ya kawaida wakati wa usingizi kwa sababu watu overwater. Ikiwa ni kali sana, huenda isiwezekane kuokoa. Uharibifu wa taji si wa kawaida, lakini kwa bahati mbaya, ni wa kawaida wakati wa usingizi. Mti wa okidi hauna kiu wakati wa usingizi na maji mengi husababisha kuoza kwa mizizi. Taji lazima daima kuwa nyepesi kijani, na si manjano-kijani. Pia inapaswa kuwa imara kwa kuguswa, na si laini. Kulala kwaweza kugeuza taji kuwa na rangi ya manjano kidogo. Hii inaonyesha tu kwamba okidi huhifadhi madini na virutubisho kwa ajili ya mwaka ujao, na si kuzitumia. Je, Orchids Zote Hujibu Kwa Njia Ileile? Kila spishi ya okidi ni tofauti, lakini zote zina mzunguko usio na utendaji, hata ikiwa ni ndogo sana. Nimeona makala zikisema kwamba okidi za Phalaenopsis hazina vipindi vya usingizi, lakini sikubaliani nazo. Ni ndogo tu, ndogo sana, ndogo sana. Picha: <unk> [Venezuela] Cattleya percivaliana fma. aurea <unk>Gabriela<unk> (Rchb.f.) O'Brien Gard. " (trg) =""10""> (Samuel 2: 4, 8, 8, 9, 10 ) Kwa sababu ya kuharibika kwa majani ya mti huo, mti huo wa okidi unaonekana kuwa umebadilika sana." Wengine, hupoteza majani yao yote na kushtua katika shabiki mpya wa okidi. Utafiti ni wa msingi. Zamani ilikuwa rahisi kujua ikiwa okidi ilikuwa imelala, kwa kuwa spishi zote zingechanua maua wakati wa masika, na kwenda kulala wakati wa majira ya baridi kali. Kwa sababu ya mchanganyiko wa spishi, hasa okidi za Phalaenopsis, sasa zinachanua maua mwaka mzima. Ikiwa unanunua Phals zinazositawi wakati tofauti wa mwaka, utahitaji kuandika akilini ni lini kipindi sahihi cha "kulala" kwa kila mmoja. Ni ipi inayokwenda kulala na ni ipi iliyo wafu... na kwa nini hilo lina maana? Utunzaji wa okidi hubadilika wakati okidi zinapokuwa kimya. Kila okidi huitikia kwa njia tofauti-tofauti mizunguko ya usingizi. Kwa hivyo, tafadhali, fanya utafiti zaidi, zaidi ya kile nilichoandika katika makala hii, juu ya spishi yako ya okidi kujua jinsi ya kutunza vizuri okidi yako. Angalia makala kama hii, ambayo hufundisha kuhusu utunzaji wa Cattleya. 6) Orchids huishi kwa muda gani? Ili kujua ikiwa orchid yako imekufa, unahitaji kujua ni muda gani wanaishi. Katika visa fulani, huenda mti huo ukaonekana kama umekufa, lakini kwa kweli uko hai na una afya nzuri sana. Kwa bahati mbaya, hii ni wakati ambapo orchids wenye vipaji hupata njia yao katika taka (zao za Krismasi, zawadi za Siku ya Mama, nk) Pia hupata umaarufu kwamba ni vigumu kuwatunza, kwani walichanua kisha "wakakufa ghafla". Katika vyumba vyetu vya kuishi na ofisi za nyumbani, wanaweza kuwa hadi 20, lakini si zaidi ya hiyo. Ikiwa umenunua tu orchid kwenye duka la vyakula au duka kubwa, basi labda ni karibu miaka 3 hadi 4 na hii ni mara ya kwanza au ya pili imekuwa katika maua. Katika vyumba vya kuhifadhia mimea na vyumba vya kulima, unaweza kupata mimea ya zamani zaidi. Hata hivyo, ni vigumu sana kwamba okidi yako uliyonunua hivi karibuni inafikia umri wa miaka 20. Jinsi ya Kutunza Orchids Zilizolala Zilizoonekana Nusu Kufa Ikiwa mti wako wa okidi ulitoka katika eneo lenye hali ya hewa kavu na majira mawili tofauti, moja kavu na moja yenye unyevunyevu, na si msitu wa mvua wa kitropiki, basi inawezekana sana kwamba utapoteza majani yake wakati wa majira ya baridi kali. Katika mzunguko wa usingizi, pseudobulb itaanza kupungua hadi karibu 1⁄3 ya ukubwa wake wa kawaida. Pseudobulbs zote zitafanya hivyo, na si moja tu au nyingine. Ikiwa unaona kwamba mimea hiyo imepungua sana, huenda ikawa ni lazima uite msaada. Baada ya kufanya utafiti na kuthibitisha kwamba orchid yako ni kweli, dormant, shedding majani, pseudobulb-shrinking orchid, basi kuweka yako kwenda. Unatunzaje okidi ambayo imelala? Acha kunyunyizia maji, acha kumwagilia mbolea kabisa, na punguza joto na taa. Hebu tuangalie kila moja ya haya kando kando. 1. Uwe na mtazamo wa kweli Acha kunyunyizia maji. Unahitaji kupunguza kasi ya kumwagilia maji karibu katikati ya vuli na kuacha kabisa kumwagilia maji wakati wa majira ya baridi kali. Katika maeneo ya Brazil, kuna kipindi tofauti cha ukame wa muda wa miezi minne, ambapo viwango vya unyevu hupungua karibu na viwango vya jangwa. Mara nyingi shule zilifungwa kwa sababu ya unyevu wa chini. Unaweza kuwa na kushangaa kwa nini mimi kutaja Brazil wakati wote... Angalia kuhusu ukurasa wa kupata kwa nini. Nilikuwa nikikuza okidi zangu zilizolala kwa kuzitengeneza ukungu asubuhi, lakini sikumwagilia maji kamwe. Ningewanywesha wengine mara kwa mara, ili kuepuka kufa - hasa wale waliopanda farasi. Kwa kweli, okidi zinazolala hupendelea halihewa hiyo ili kupona na kuhifadhi nishati kwa ajili ya ukuzi wa mwaka ujao. Kwa hiyo, msiogope kwamba uchafu tu utapatia mahitaji yao, kwa sababu utapatia. Huwezi kuwafanya wawe na maji mengi. Kwa upande mwingine, ikiwa utaendelea kunyunyizia maji kwa njia ileile ambayo umekuwa ukinyunyizia mimea yako maji, basi utafanya mizizi iharibike sana. Maji hayatamezwa, yakikaa katika vidimbwi vya maji vinavyoalika bakteria. 2. Uwezekano wa kupata Wakati okidi inapokuwa kimya, inahitaji maji na mbolea kidogo. Baadhi ya aina hizo hupendelea kuweka maji baada ya majani yao yote kuanguka, na hivyo kufurahia kipindi cha ukame kwa muda wa mwezi mmoja. Ni rahisi sana kunyunyizia mimea ya okidi maji kupita kiasi wakati wa hatua za usingizi, na hivyo kuchochea kuoza kwa mizizi na taji. Mtazamo mwingine juu ya mbolea ni kwamba bila maji, huna haja ya kuwa mbolea. Katika mzunguko wa ukuzi, kabla ya kutumia mbolea, unahitaji kwanza kunyunyizia mimea yako maji. Sikuzote tumia mbolea baada ya mizizi kuingiza maji yasiyotiwa mbolea ambayo yanahitaji. Kwa kuwa wewe si kumwagilia maji wakati wa usingizi, mizizi ingekuwa kunyonya mbolea safi. Hilo litasababisha tu kuchomwa sana na mizizi. Orchid yako haitaitikia mbolea hata hivyo, hivyo kuokoa fedha yako na kuacha mbolea mpaka wewe kuchunguza ukuaji mpya mizizi. 3. Uwe na mtazamo wa kweli Kupunguza joto Unahitaji kupunguza joto digrii chache, kama inawezekana. Joto baridi hufanya mtu alale usingizi. Hata kama orchid yako ina kipindi cha wiki moja ya usingizi, kama vile Phalaenopsis, joto hili la baridi huchochea spike mpya ya maua. Kwa hiyo, ama njia <unk> muda mrefu wa usingizi au muda mfupi wa usingizi <unk> unashinda. 8 Jinsi ya Kuanzisha Kipindi cha Usingizi Katika mazingira ya asili, okidi huanza kutembea baada ya kuota na kugundua mabadiliko ya mazingira. Kama ilivyoelezwa hapo awali, hali ya usingizi huambatana na kupungua kwa joto (si sana, lakini digrii chache), siku fupi (miaka fupi ya kufunuliwa kwa jua) na mvua kidogo. Kama wewe ni kukua orchid ndani ya nyumba, kama mimi ni, unahitaji kusababisha kipindi cha usingizi kwamba simulates majira ya baridi. Dendrobiums itatoa majani yao yote na haja ya kukata tamaa ya mabadiliko ya joto (si wote <unk> kuangalia spishi yako). Phalaenopsis itafurahia usiku wenye joto zaidi na saa chache za jua kamili. Ikiwa utaendelea kunyunyizia maji, ukitoa joto lilelile, na nuru ileile ya jua, huenda okidi yako isivue maua. Kwa kweli, kudumisha joto lilelile ndiyo sababu kuu kwa nini okidi za watu wengi hazifanyi maua tena. Unahitaji kuchochea okidi kwenda usingizi baada ya maua kwa kudhibiti <unk> au tweaking, kama kizazi kipya wito <unk> baadhi ya mambo muhimu. Ili kuunda upya hii ndani ya nyumba, unahitaji kuweka taa za bandia kwenye masaa 12-14 tu badala ya masaa 14-16 kwa siku. Nuru kidogo huiga siku fupi za majira ya baridi kali. Unaweza kukomesha mbolea zote, kwa kuwa umwagiliaji maji utapunguzwa hadi kutokeza ukungu. Mimea hiyo ya okidi hutumiwa kukausha uchawi. Kufungua thermostat wakati wa baridi usiku (kama hii inawezekana katika eneo lako) ili katika miezi ya baridi, joto itashuka usiku. Katika maeneo yenye ukame yanayofanana na jangwa, unyevu usiku bado ni wa juu na huenda kukawa na baridi. Ikiwa ni lazima, chukua joto la chini wakati wa mchana, na usipunguze joto la chini ya 65 ° F (kwa sababu hii, unapaswa kuamua aina ya mnyama. Lakini kwa hakika, kuondoa usiku kwa 10 ° F. Weka unyevu wa juu na fan. Kwa matumaini, okidi yako inalala usingizi mrefu tu na si kubisha milango ya mbinguni. Baada ya kusoma makala hii, unapaswa kujua kama orchid yako ni wafu au dormant, jinsi ya kusababisha kipindi cha usingizi, na nini kutarajia wakati wa usingizi. Usiache Kujifunza! Ikiwa unataka kupata maelezo zaidi na mwongozo wa kurasa 14 za mbolea, tafadhali jiandikishe kwa jarida langu. Mimi si spam, lakini kutuma barua pepe nje bi-mwezi kwa baadhi ya mada ya ajabu ya maslahi. Ikiwa unataka habari zaidi, bonyeza hapa kwenda kwenye ukurasa maalum kwenye wavuti hii ambapo ninaelezea kwa undani zaidi. Ikiwa unataka kuhifadhi kumbukumbu za orchid, tafadhali angalia ukurasa huu. Kama kuweka maelezo si kitu yako, basi kuna bure excel spreadsheet kwamba unaweza kupakua. Bonyeza hapa kwa habari zaidi juu ya jinsi ya kufanya hivyo. Ikiwa utajiunga na jarida langu, nitakutumia mwongozo wa kurasa 14 juu ya vidokezo kuu vya mbolea ya orchid. Inaweza kupakuliwa na unaweza kuichapisha kwenye kompyuta yako. Nilibuni mwongozo huo uwe kitabu cha kupaka rangi, ili tu ufurahie. Kama ilikuwa na manufaa, tafadhali kunitumia maoni katika sehemu ya chini. Ni njia gani ya kumwagilia maji wakati wa usingizi na unajuaje kama ua lako la okidi limeporomoka?