How Can I Get My Paph Orchid to Bloom?
- 1). Intensify the light, without exposing the lady's-slipper to direct sun, to promote blooming. Place it close to any window, for example, except for one that faces north. Alternatively, place the paph 6 to 12 inches under two 40-watt fluorescent tubes 12 to 16 hours daily.
- 2). Control the room temperature to maintain it at 70 to 80 degrees F during the day. Drop it by 10 degrees at night.
- 3). Fill a 4- to 6-inch planter with well-drained potting mix. A blend of fir bark and sand is an adequate medium for growing lady's-slipper orchids.
- 4). Take the orchid out of the pot gently when it begins to outgrow the container. Pull three leaves at a time away from the main foliage cluster until they become separated from the main plant. Verify that each set of three leaves has roots growing from them. Replant all divisions in 4 to 6-inch planters. Divide overgrown paphs in this manner instead of repotting them in a bigger planter.
- 5). Irrigate paphs with tepid water. Avoid softened water. Apply the moisture until excess drips out of the pot's drainage holes. Water again when the soil surface dries, but there is still moist soil underneath.
- 6). Add water to a plant tray and fill it with pebbles. Place the orchid pot on the rock layer to keep its surrounding environment humid. Verify that the drainage holes are above the water level to prevent the soil from absorbing excess moisture.
- 7). Give plants growing in fir bark a 30-10-10 fertilizer. Paphs planted in another mix need a 10-10-10 analysis. Prepare the feed at half strength for the growing season. Water the plant with it once every 2 weeks. As another option, dilute the fertilizer to 1/4 strength and use it every time the orchid needs watering. Saturate the soil with plain water once monthly to leach fertilizer-salt buildup. Feed Paphiopedilum orchids once a month in the winter.
Source...