The buds and flowers of my orchids fall off – what to do?

What to do: change location or illuminate
In the course of their evolution, most orchid species gave up their life on the ground because they could no longer carry out photosynthesis in the eternal twilight of the rainforests. High up on the branches of huge giants of the jungle, the magnificent flowers, as epiphytes, receive the necessary amount of sunlight for their beautiful blossoms. The epiphytes do not produce the blossoms for our pleasure, but aim for numerous multiplication by means of fruits and seeds. If the light on the windowsill does not come close to the tropical conditions, orchids respond to the deficiency by shedding buds and flowers. How to solve the problem:

• Relocate to a bright, not full sun place
• Ideally on the west or east window
• At the south window with shading in the summer midday sun

The best window seat cannot prevent buds and flowers from shedding when a cloudy sky blocks the sun’s rays. With daylight lamps or fluorescent tubes of light color 865 you can bring light into the darkness at the orchid location so that the flowers stay where they belong. A lighting duration of at least 8 hours is well chosen if the sun does not show up in the sky at all.

Cause: cold

What to do: Regulate the temperature
The most beautiful orchid species shiver at temperatures below 15 degrees Celsius. As a result of the cold in the room or a cold draft on the windowsill, buds and flowers fall to the ground. Therefore, please mount a thermometer in the immediate vicinity of your orchids in order to regulate the temperature level in good time. We have put together the right heat for the most popular orchids for you below:

• Phalaenopsis: 20 to 25 degrees by day – 18 to 25 degrees by night – minimum: 15 degrees Celsius
• Cattleya: 25 to 30 degrees during the day – 18 to 22 degrees at night – minimum: 20 degrees Celsius
• Dendrobium: 20 to 25 degrees day and night – minimum: 18 degrees Celsius
• Miltonia: 17 to 22 degrees day and night – minimum: 15 degrees Celsius
• Vanda: 25 to 27 degrees by day – 20 to 22 degrees by night – minimum: 17 degrees Celsius

If you ventilate the apartment in autumn and winter, please do not tilt the windows at the location of your exotic houseplants. Just a few minutes of cold drafts with temperature fluctuations of more than 5 degrees Celsius are enough for buds and flowers to be shed.

Dry heating air

What to do: set up far away from active radiators, spray regularly
pampering orchids with tropical warmth during the cold season is a double-edged sword that can lead to the shedding of buds and flowers. In order to achieve the required temperature level, the radiators in the room must be active. As a side effect, the humidity drops noticeably. When the humidity is below 50 percent, the buds begin to fall in most species and varieties. How to counteract:

• During the heating season, spray the leaves every 2 days with lime-free water
• In addition, set up a humidifier in the room
• Alternatively, fill the coaster with expanded clay and water

In order to increase the local humidity for your tropical plants, the specialist trade offers special planters. The flower pots have a pedestal for the culture pot. This allows you to fill the bottom of the pot with water without causing waterlogging. The evaporating water clouds the leaves, buds and flowers so that your orchids see no reason to be dropped.

Cause: escaping ripening gas

What to do: Remove the fruit baskets
The ripening gas ethylene causes the buds and flowers of your orchids to age prematurely, whereupon they fall off after a short time. The gas is given off by ripening fruits such as apples, bananas and pears. A sweet smell indicates the colorless, non-toxic gas. Therefore, carry a fruit basket out of the room immediately. After a few days, the premature aging process and with it the fall of buds and flowers will stop.

Waterlogging

What you have to do: Repot and water properly
For a substrate that is too wet, buds and flowers must primarily lose their lives. If orchids are watered excessively, waterlogging is the inevitable result. A putrefaction process then sets in at the roots. The supply of leaves and shoots comes to a standstill. Without replenishment of water and nutrients, buds and flowers fall off. This is to be done now:

• Repot orchids that are soaked in water immediately in dry, fresh orchid soil
• Cut off the softened, brown root strands
• Do not cut green, plump aerial roots, leaves and stems
• Do not water for 8 to 14 days, just spray with soft water

In the future you should only water your orchids when the coarse bark substrate is noticeably dry. The watering can is used more often in summer than in winter.

dryness

What has to be done: Dip and water more frequently
The incessant plea for economical watering prompts orchid newbies to let the substrate dry out completely. The immediate response of the sensitive flowering diva is the shedding of buds and flowers. Therefore, pot the affected plants out and check the condition of the orchid soil. Crackling dryness calls for an immediate dive. How to do it right:

• Pour soft, warm water into a vessel
• Immerse the root ball in it until no more air bubbles rise
• Then let the water drain well

Please make sure that no water has accumulated in the leaf axils and on the root neck before you put the root network back into the culture pot. During dry summer periods, repeat the dive once a week. In winter, the water supply takes place at longer intervals, but always early enough so that the orchid soil does not dry out.

Cause: leaf chlorosis from hard irrigation water

What to do: Pour with soft water
Orchids cannot tolerate the high calcium and salt content of tap water. As the queens of the rainforest, orchids are geared towards a supply of soft, lime-free water. If you still pour water directly from the tap, excess lime will accumulate in the substrate. As a result, the slightly acidic pH value changes and rises to the alkaline range greater than 7. As a result, the nutrients are fixed and no longer reach the buds and flowers. The yellowish discolored leaves are a visible symptom of the deficit. How to act correctly:

• Pot the root ball, rinse off the calcified substrate with rainwater
• Allow the root network to dry and pot and fresh orchid soil
• Immediately pour with collected rainwater or decalcified tap water

The fall of buds and flowers is not stopped immediately because your orchids regenerate over a long period of time. If the pH value in the substrate comes back into balance, new buds and flowers are not long in coming.

Conclusion
The shedding of buds and flowers is a cry for help from your orchids. With this symptom, the exotic flowers from the rainforest signal that their care has got into difficulties. Common causes for the problem are unsuitable site conditions, incorrect watering, dry heating air and escaping ripening gas. Once the problem has been narrowed down based on a critical analysis, you can read about what to do here.