Quite awhile, but never fear, the wait will be worth it. And it will bloom for months, maybe more than a year. As each flower fades, another bud will form and the spike will get taller.

This is a very rewarding plant. Congratulations on getting it to bloom.

I bought one from Smith & Hawkins in June, from their sale table for $5.00. Plant looked healthy but was dehydrated and the long spike dried up (I thought). I noticed, today, the dried spike has a green bud forming on the tip. I am amazed. I think I have a flower coming. I was tempted to cut that spike. Glad I forgot to!

Congratulations...

Sheila,

Congratulations! These are amazing plants, as Richard said - blooming for months and months from the same spike.

Hang in there. Spikes can be taller than yours before they bloom. My first spike was bitten in half by cat Kerplunk (my fault for putting it in his sunning spot). Outside in a tree, something ate the side shoot. Finally, it started blooming and sent up 2 more spikes. Sometimes, all 3 spikes are blooming at once. Delightful.

Last winter and spring, buds on all 3 spikes stalled. I'd been so afraid to repot - having read that they don't like their roots disturbed, that I'd let it go for too long. As soon as I repotted it - being careful of the roots, the buds took off, and it's been blooming ever since.

Jane - the benefits of neglect... Sometimes, the plants know better than we do.

Whitecat8

CONGRATS !!! I hear these guys can be tough to flower so you must be taking very good care of it. I'd like to try one but am a bit intimidated...that and I have 10 cats and I don't mean the good CATTS...I mean evil, spike murdering fuzzies.

That's exciting, Sheila! These are such great plants and you must be providing the right conditions. Congrats.

Marci

Thx everyone. Now my dilemma will be whether to leave it outside in the screenhouse or bring it indoors where it will have warmer temps but less humidity. Any thoughts on this query?

Sheila :)

Mine's outside for the summer and then in the orchid room, where temps range from the high 50s to mid-70s, humidity is from 25%-65%, tending toward higher, and there's air movement during the day.

The Psychopsis is in the 3rd row from the E/SE windows and immediately to the left of 2 T8 bulbs. In other words, no supplemental light directly overhead.

It's in a medium bark mix, and I tend to underwater.

Hope this helps.

Whitecat8

I had mine outside all summer in Eastern morning light. They also got, end of day,Western light. Can't take credit for the spike as it came with, what appeared to be, a dried up spike. It appears to have two buds forming on the tip. I bought two of them from a sale table at S&H. The other one was cut down and has not sent up a new spike. Finished two growths, so we'll see.

I read that they are easy to grow.

Jane

When psychopsis spikes are damaged, they'll typically re-flower or keiki from the next node down.

The oldest spike on my oldest psychopsis is getting on 6 years old. It flowered successively for about 4 years from the tip, then for the last 2 years, from the 2nd node down. The top part has since turned brown and crunchy but it's still blooming from the 2nd node, and it's got a few more nodes in reserve... they're cool plants.

Maybe I'll have luck with the cut one. They cut it down to about an inch. I think it might have one node. Otherwise, I'll have to get this sucker to spike again. I hear that's 'easier said than done!'

Jane

Jane & all,

I got my Psychopsis in April, '05, with 1 spike that was chomped off by Kerplunk, the spike-killing cat. That summer, the side spike was bitten off by something outside.

Since then, the original spike has put out another side spike, and 2 new spikes have developed, 1 w/ double flowers, plus 3-4 new pbs. When the planets align just right, 3 or 4 flowers are open at once. Awesome.

For me, it's been a low-maintenance plant, & cultural conditions are in an earlier post in this thread:

"Mine's outside for the summer and then in the orchid room, where temps range from the high 50s to mid-70s, humidity is from 25%-65%, tending toward higher, and there's air movement during the day.

"The Psychopsis is in the 3rd row from the E/SE windows and immediately to the left of 2 T8 bulbs. In other words, no supplemental light directly overhead.

"It's in a medium bark mix, and I tend to underwater."

Hopefully, similar conditions will send your Psychopsis into ecstasies of blooming.

Whitecat8

I'm glad to hear success stories, because so far my psychopsis has been a great grower, but a non-bloomer. I got the plant (OHG) about a year and a half ago with 11 PBs of varying sizes, and I now have 16-18 PBs but so far no spikes. I've been steadily increasing the light as the months wear on, to where it now has its own dedicated 45W CFL perched inches over it, as well as a SW window exposure. It grows in straight lava rock in a clay pot, watered when dry, and has roots, leaves and PBs coming out everywhere, but no flowers! Bakers' sheet shows little seasonality in the native environment, so I don't think I'm missing a cool-down or severe dry-out from the culture.

This is bothering me a little since many people seem to get psychopsis to bloom on quite small (2-3 PB) plants in quite low (phal) light. If nothing changes by next spring, I think this one is going outside in some serious sun for an attitude adjustment.

Jane, you may have hit on something: difficult to spike, but easy to keep in bloom.

Read this (apologize, I don't know how to post a clickable link). Scroll down and read about 'flowering.'

http://www.orchidweb.com/OrchidOfWeek.aspx?ID=1357

What I've learned from other growers is that you can really push the light on this plant. Forget Phal light! Mine got sun all summer and is still outside in SW sun. The leaves are purple-freckled. I've been told they are very difficult to spike and to protect the spike with your life. It will flower forever.

My one plant had the spike cut down by the sales lady. I almost killed her! She didn't touch the other plant and it now has formed a fat bud. I'm thrilled because that spike appeared dead. I've also been told they do not like their roots disturbed and should only be repotted when the mix breaks down. Even then, they should just be moved carefully to a new pot with fresh mix surrounding the roots. Don't disturb the roots. I was told disturbing the roots can set the plant back years.

Who knows, I'm just thrilled to see that bud! I paid five-bucks per plant and they looked like hell (dehydrated), but I knew they'd bounce back.

Jane

Jane, I didn't repot mine for 2+ years, afraid of disturbing the roots. It wasn't in fresh bark to begin with, so it was a drastic situation.

All 3 spikes had been stalled for 4-5 months, though, so I repotted it, being careful not to break off healthy roots. However, they sure got "disturbed" by the spraying, clipping, etc.

Sure enough, about 2 weeks later, those spikes burst into green and bloomed soon after. The only thing that changed was the repotting.

Go for it. They may be hardier than we're led to believe.

Whitecat8

My spike is not over 16" tall and still no bud! I put in a supporting stake today. I've had this plant for three years, it probably has a dozen leafless psbs and four or five nice leaves. I too was discouraged about no blooms. At the start of summer it went outside in the screenhouse with catts, dends oncids. I did put it in a shadier location, but I'm inclined to think the much higher light is what finally got it to spike.

Happy growing.
Sheila :)

So much for what you read. Whitecat, that makes me feel better about repotting. I know next spring they will have to move up because they are hanging out of the small pots. Those spikes are amazing!

Jane

Sheila, My spikes measure between 28" and 24," but no doubt the 1st one was shorter when it started blooming in May, '06.

{{gwi:194980}}

Jane, I asked the grower, Jerry Fischer, about repotting. He said just try not to break healthy roots. Once most of the bark was off, I treated it like any other repotting - that is, not super super gently. Not only did the little, stalled buds open after that, but it's gotten 2 new pbs. It's in a plastic pot inside a clay pot just a bit larger - for stability.

Whitecat8

Sheila - Thanks about the plant. It's an easy one for me, but then, others have no problems w/ some orchids I can't get to rebloom for anything. And I want naturally curly hair, too. :)

This summer, the Psychoposis was in the lathe house, w/ E/SE light cut 50%. It was on the 3rd row from the front and got a bit of afternoon light from the West.

I know what you mean about getting re-excited about a plant. Before our society's orchid sale, I was looking up cultural info to print off and give to customers. A couple of plants stayed here because their descriptions sounded so cool and because the cultural info reminded me of a condition I'd forgotten.

Be sure to post pix of the plant you get. Whitecat8

Whitecat, that is too much! You must post a picture when it blooms. Tell me you get more than one bloom at time. That's the only downside of this plant. Huge spikes with one flower on top. Mine each have two large new growths going, but I'll wait till Spring to repot them both. Stuck them pot-in-pot until then.

I always wanted straight hair. Fought the curls all my life..

Jane - Yep, 3 blooms at a time. Even though it's a monster, and I'm concentrating on smaller orchids, I can't give it up. It's so happy! Whitecat8

{{gwi:194981}}