Bud blast - Why??

[Monks-in-Miami]

Several of my orchids have been successful in spiking, but then the little buds either come out dried or eventually start to dry on the spike. Also I notice that some of the spikes even have some dry areas along the length. What is the general cause of this? Each of them has been in the same spot, and have not been moved to new locations so I'm just not sure what the deal is.

[Chris in Hamilton]

Need a better picture, but maybe scale? Can you give a close up near the bottom of the spike in the last pic? Around the area of the bottom buds.

[raybark]

Thrips, maybe?

[JDT]

I would also say probably thrips. When was the last time you treated them Monique, they can do some serious damage this time of year.

[Sheryl]

Oh wow, sorry Monique! what do you treat thrips with Jack? And is this a preventative measure we should take?

[JDT]

Oh wow, sorry Monique! what do you treat thrips with Jack? And is this a preventative measure we should take?

Yes this is something that you should set up a schedule to do most of our year. I use Joy dish soap and put 3 tablespoons per gallon in my 2 gallon sprayer and spray every nook and cranny you can reach on those orchids that are possibilities of thrips, Cattleya's can also get thrips, I end up spraying every orchid I have except my Bulbophyllum which seem not to be bothered by them mainly because of all the water they get. Normally when I am done with each plant it is full of soap bubbles which don't last long, 10 days later do this again. If I do this during our fall and winter I will also add some vegetable oil, if the temp is above 85 degrees don't use the oil as it will damage the plant from the heat. Periods of drought are idea times for both mites and thrips, I don't feel as if we have had the rain we normally get in March and that is when I first treated mine since last fall, I will do this again in 2 months unless I see signs of them.

[Monks-in-Miami]

Yes this is something that you should set up a schedule to do most of our year. I use Joy dish soap and put 3 tablespoons per gallon in my 2 gallon sprayer and spray every nook and cranny you can reach on those orchids that are possibilities of thrips, Cattleya's can also get thrips, I end up spraying every orchid I have except my Bulbophyllum which seem not to be bothered by them mainly because of all the water they get. Normally when I am done with each plant it is full of soap bubbles which don't last long, 10 days later do this again. If I do this during our fall and winter I will also add some vegetable oil, if the temp is above 85 degrees don't use the oil as it will damage the plant from the heat. Periods of drought are idea times for both mites and thrips, I don't feel as if we have had the rain we normally get in March and that is when I first treated mine since last fall, I will do this again in 2 months unless I see signs of them.

Thanks for the response and suggestion Jack. It has been drier than usual for us over the last few months. I am a little behind on my fertilizing and pest control, so thrips could be it. Could I combine the soap with the fertilizer and apply both at the same time, or should they be done separately?

[JDT]

Thanks for the response and suggestion Jack. It has been drier than usual for us over the last few months. I am a little behind on my fertilizing and pest control, so thrips could be it. Could I combine the soap with the fertilizer and apply both at the same time, or should they be done separately?

No as the soap will only rinse the fertilizer off as it drips, usually when I spray the soap there is a pile of soap bubbles on the ground under the plant. The dry weather is when you will get more thrips!