How can you bring back an orchid to life?

The flowers of my orchid are dead but the roots and the leaves look good. Do orchids change flowers or no? Is it dead? how can I bring it to life?

How can you bring back an orchid to life?
When the leaves get shriveled and leathery looking it is lacking water. Watch the roots for soft, browning, mushy, roots. These should be cut off with sharp shears or pruners. The "soil" should never be actual soil of any kind. They grown on the sides of trees in nature. There "soil" therefore needs to be chunks of bark ( I add a few pieces of charcoal to keep things fresh ). It sounds like your plant may be in it's dormant cycle. Trim back old flower stems and repot ( replacing old bark ) at this time. When feeding, use fertilizer at half strength. It is not recommended to fertilize while plant is resting/dormant.
Reply:As long as the leaves and the steam are still in good shape, your orchid will probably be fine. Just watch to make sure you don't over water it or on the other hand let it dry out too much. Orchids go thru a period of time (just like all other flowering plants) where there will not be any blooms on it for a while. Make sure you fertilize it too, and if it needs to be repotted you might want to do that too. I work for Lowes in the Garden Center and we mark down orchids all the time just because they have lost the blooms they had when they came in, and it takes a while for them to rebloom. I have also seen them on the markdown cart so long before that you could see where they started getting buds on them again. Just watch it. Like the other person said, watch that it doesn't dry out, but if you notice that the leaves are getting slimy, then you have over watered it. I have also heard that orchids like to be misted with either a mister or spray bottle. try that when you water it instead of just using a cup or watering can.


Also check out websites and books for more info on taking care of it. I see alot of customers who talk how great they do with orchids, then others will say they are one of the hardest things to grow. Hope you have a pretty good green thumb for them. GOOD LUCK!
Reply:Start here





http://www.beautifulorchids.com/orchids/...





It's important to know what type of orchid you have before trying to care for it. Many need different temps, light, feeding, etc... you probably have a dendrobium or a phalaenopsis... those are the most commonly sold in big box stores like Lowes and Home Depot. Google the above orchid names I gave you and see which you have. Goodluck and kudos to you for trying to keep it going. Most people view them as disposable plants.
Reply:Water and fertilize as usual it will take a while for it to bloom again, in the winter they slow down, so cut back on the fertilizer, but watering it will be fine, it will be all good.
Reply:They have to go dormant in the winter.


Let it have its break and it will come back. :-)