Ok, first of all, the zone doesn't matter if you keep it indoors, and yes it should be inside where you live. Second, a finger isn't terrible, but not half as good as leaving a plain chopstick in the soil all the time (for a time anyhow) and pulling it out like a dipstick every day to touch your inner wrist to see if it's wet all over, damp halfway down, etc. and if it's dry ~ halfway down, that's when you water til it comes out the drain hole (always water this way, slowly, so all the roots do get some, and not in little bits every day which just gets the top layer wet). Your tree may be staying too wet all the time because the soil's bad (a lot of 'cheap' bonsai come in potting soil, full of peat and holding water too long), so you may need to repot, with no layers, but a mix of 1/3 soil with larger particles (a garden centre's the place to look) and 2/3 grit - there are many kinds you can use, from small aquarium gravel (the glassy looking stuff) to akadama - an expensive product only available online from bonsai places, unless you have a dedicated bonsai store nearby (NOT a big box store that happens to sell lots of little 'bonsai' but no good supplies). If you're in a rural area, a farm feed store would have chicken grit, which is very good, as would be crushed lava or pumice. Olives are Meditarranean, from dry, hot places with very gritty 'soil' - not black garden stuff that's good for flowers or veggies. Lighting is also important, and if you can at least afford a 'full spectrum' fluorescent (there are newer ones that will say so) kept no more than 6 inches away from the tree for 15 hours a day your tree will appreciate it! Otherwise (if you more money) I'd recommend a 4' long fluor. fixture and a "T5" full spectrum bulb or two, but do your best for now. Don't be intimidated by watering - just remember, olives will die sooner if most of the soil stays wet all the time than if it dries out a bit too much once in a while.

Hi smithjm, Welcome to the world of orchids! What you have there is a Dendrobium orchid. These are sympodial orchids, which basically means that it grows laterally, putting out a new growth when the old one is mature. Each of those growths is called a pseudobulb and, in the case of Dendrobiums, a cane. Flowers generally emerge from the most recent cane, but the other canes are there as water and nutrient storage organs, so leave them together. Dendrobium is one of the largest families in the orchid world and has been separated into groups. Your Dendrobium belongs to the Phalaenopsis group, because its flowers look like Phalaenopsis (moth orchids). It needs bright light (some people in Florida put them outside), warmth and humidity to grow well and flower. From what I know about them, these orchids do not rebloom from old spikes, so you did the right thing to cut off the old one. Orchid flowers last a long time, but most orchids are not always in bloom. You will have to wait until the newest growth (looks like the growth on the right hand side of the picture is growing right now) has matured (gotten to the same size as the cane that has already flowered) to get more flowers. If you want to repot, now would probably be a good time. Be sure to use a pot that is just one small size up, since the larger a pot, the longer it takes to dry out, which can lead to root rot. To repot, remove the plant from its current pot, removing whatever is loose of the old media and cutting off dead roots (stringy, hollow -- good roots are firm to the touch). Clean it up in the sink. Keep all the growths together. Hold the oldest (smallest) growth at the edge of the pot and then fill in with orchid media. I'll let someone else give you a recommendation as to which media to use, since conditions in Florida are much different than they are up here in Canada. Clay is a good idea, as they are heavier than plastic, which is good as these plants do get top heavy when blooming. Clay does dry faster, though, so be sure to keep up on your watering. Have fun - as many of us here can attest, this is an addicting hobby, but oh so much fun. Julie

I suppose I'm too sentimental for my own good. I know this won't be the only orchid I'll ever have and it has proven to be a learning experience, so I haven't come away totally empty handed. It's still hanging on though. I went ahead and ordered the Thiomyl which will probably arrive early next week. Until then, I've repotted it and will just leave it alone. I'll check it again when the thiomyl arrives.

Is the water clear? It looks dark, but that could be a trick of the light. I would remove it from the vase and check the root health, while it is out of the vase rinse the vase well and rinse off the pebbles also. Reseat it in the pebbles and fill with fresh water. I would not leave that dowel in the water though, it will rot and rot could spread to the plant. The top of that one stalk looks like it has begun to shrivel, that will likely continue and may even turn brown. Right now I would worry more about letting the plant stabilize than the top of that stem.