Aimee please share your secrets on what you did to cause this to happen.?? I've had it happen but making it happen is another story. I have Vandas pushing 7 feet and would sure be nice to have more plants rather than more height!!! So ungainly and prone to wind damage when they get too tall. I"ve tried clipping out the growing tip but usually results in a hunch back lol New growth just starting to the side of the clip and then resuming it's attempt to get even taller Would LOVE to be able to cause offsets.!! The worst IME are the strap leaf .Teretes or hybrids between being the easiest to prune to size so you get more plants Why in the world wouldn't you want it to offset??? They also flower and produce roots so result in a MUCH fuller, robust plant. gary

Hi Alina, I would think that the SDBs would already be blooming for you, but I'm not all that familiar with your zone. I drew up this silly thing a while back for another forum member and it might be of use to you. The stalks come from the center of the fan like this (this is looking down from the top of the fan at the swelling stalk inside):

Hi, I've donated a lot of irises to the college where I work, and these always bloom earlier than any of mine. Right now Celebration Song is almost finished blooming. Victoria Falls, also. VF has seriously twisted stalks and always leans over; they never stake them. I don't know what causes the twisting, but it definitely won't affect the flowers if VF is any indication. The stalks are hideously bent, but the flowers are lovely and plentiful. Speaking of twisting, I sure wish Red Skies had been more supple as this most recent Storm of the Year blew through. The wind snapped two of three stalks in half. It's a shame. I really wanted to see multiple blooms on that flower--it's a beauty. Mike

If you were here, I would give you part of it, as I have it growing in several pots. The flower spike is bigger now than when it bloomed before. I'm not sure why the leaves are so droopy, but if I give it more light, they turn brown, and so I keep it fairly protected. It was being grown indoors when I bought it, and so I considered it mainly a house plant. I am going to move the pot(s) to a different location the next time it starts to bloom so that I can rotate the pot regularly. The flowers stay on the plant for a very long time, but it is a bit difficult to move, as the leaves are like saw blades and are quick to make cuts if I am not wearing long leather gloves. Here is a somewhat similar bromeliad we saw in at theArenal Butterfly Conservatory / Botanical Gardens in Costa Rica last March:The leaves are droopy and turning somewhat yellow, but at least the flower stalk is fairly erect, although the flowers on this one are not as heavy as mine. According the Wikipedia, the Arenal Botanical Gardens have fallen into disrepair, but they still charged $20 entrance. However, they have a nice zoo there and some beautiful waterfalls.Here is a bromeliad with droopy leaves on a tree:and one on a tree with a droopy flower stalk:More evidence of how the park has fallen into disrepair!