Quote Originally Posted by raybark View Post
There is one aspect of plants that I had forgotten about mentioning: adjustment.

If a plant has been grow under one light level - typically a greenhouse for commercially-obtained orchids - and you bring it home and place it in "lesser" conditions, such as under lights or in a window, it may very well still bloom, but it will likely take a growth cycle or two off, have fewer and/or smaller flowers, and will likely rebloom less frequently going forward.

In addition to whatever environmental triggers the particular plant relies on to bloom, it also has to have the energy reserves to do so - those sugars and amino acids (among others) that it produces itself through photosynthesis and subsequent processes. A change in lighting may cause the plant to "wait and see" what the future may bring, and may slow the rate at which those reserves are accumulated.

So, while we should try to give the plant what it expects in nature, the inability to do so does not absolutely mean you cannot grow and bloom them.
Very well said, Ray. I have a friend in Sweden who grows Vanda of all kinds successfully (Tommy Ljunggren). He always stresses the need for adaptation of the plants to his conditions and they always seem to bloom, maybe not immediately, but after some adaptation time.