Phalaenopsis Leopard Prince 'Sogo F-611'

[Phalphanatic]

Here is another picture from this week. It is of the 'Sogo F-611' clone of Phalaenopsis Leopard Prince. I believe this is a fairly common hybrid. Enjoy.

[Gin]

That is a beauty , Thanks for sharing it . Happy Growing ! Gin

[Tanya]

Its lovely .

I spent over 10 minutes composing my previous reply, and when I clicked submit, I got disconnected !!!
Anyway Tim, I wanted to ask you if this phal of yours continue producing blooms on the same spike,(I know there's a proper word for it but it scaped me at the moment) or will you cut the spike and let it branched? The reason I asked this, is because I have a phal with blooms similar to yours (mine is NOID). It has 2 old spikes from last year and I cut them after blooming. They haven't done anything since then. They are still green, but sulking. Now the plant has produced a new spike. What do you think? Should I get rid of the 2 older spike and let the plant channel all the energy to the new spike? I think the new one is going to be as big as the 2 older ones, judging by the size of its base, but its too early to tell, its only 6 inches tall. I appreciate any info, TIA

[Phalphanatic]

Tanya,

Thanks for the nice words for about the flower. Its always nice to have others think your plants and flowers are nice.

There are two answers about flower spikes and cutting them back.

If the plant is a species or primary hybrid, keep the flower spikes on the plant until it dies. Phalaenopsis species will continue to bloom on the same spike for several years. Especially plants like P. bellina, P. violacea, P. cornu-cervi, P. mannii, P. amboinensis, P. venosa, P. equestris, etc...

In rare occasions, complex hybrids may rebloom a following season on the same inflorescence. Plants that have P. equestris or P. bellina in the background. Plant inflorescences that are of complex hybrids may continue to grow and bloom during the same season. It is rare that these type of plants will bloom on the same inflorescence the following season.

My usual rule of thumb is to cut back the spike of a complex hybrid at the beginning of the next season. This is the thought not the absolute rule.

I would suggest cutting back the older flower inflorescence and allowing the new one to take all the energy. When you do cut back the older spikes, flame whatever instrument you use to cut, i.e., scissors or knife. Flame it for about 1 minute to make certain you kill any virus or disease that might be transmitted from the instrument to the plant. Also if you are trimming more than one spike on a plant or if you are trimming multiple plants, flame the instrument after each cut.

Hope this is helpful and not too wordy. Good luck.

[Tanya]

Thanks for the input, Tim.