Cymbidium Golden Elf 'Sundust' HELP!
 

Cym. Golden Elf 'Sundust' are the only two plants I have that don't do ANYTHING! I take good care of all of my orchids, but I can't get my Cymbidiums to bloom. They just develop small, pathetic new growths all year long, and then just start new growths when the old ones mature. I leave them outside until the nights are cool in the fall, give them excellent light and fertilizer, water regularly... and I can't get them to bloom to save my life. I just use them as grassy decorative plants anymore, I've nearlly given up! Why is this supposedly easy hybrid giving me such problems, while every other orchid in my collection flourishes?!?!?! What tricks work for eveybody? PLEASE HELP!!!!

I can't imagine what the problem could be. I grow 2 of these plants, one in pure horse poop and one potted in a mixture of coconut husks and charcoal. The one in horse poop is twice as big! :cheer:

Here is a link that might help. Good luck!

Dragon Agro Products - Cymbidiums, Chinese Cymbidiums.

I too would like to know the answer InspirChild's question! I have two of these as well, but I have not had them a full year yet. To my understanding, cymbidiums need the cooler temperatures to initiate spikes, or at least that is what I have been told. For how long do they need these cool temperatures? Soon it will be to cold outside and I will have to bring them inside for the winter and then they will not get much of a temperature drop inside. I am starting to wonder if I will be able to get mine to flower or not. I thought the Cymbidium Golden Elf 'Sundust' was also a summer bloomer....so I guess I missed out on flowers this year. Can anyone helps us?

Hi , these do not need cool Temps. I grow mine with the Catts. indoors all year . The Golden Elf has 4 spikes this year . They want to be very pot bound don't do them a favor by re potting only when the pot if plastic is ready to split , I had to re pot mine it did not bloom last year because of the re potting . Gin

I am growing mine in clay pots, and I think that might just be the problem! The only time that one of them bloomed was a few years back when it was in a plastic pot, but even then, it only has one spike with 3 or 4 flowers. When is a good time to repot these so I don't disturb their growth pattern?

Mine is in a tall, narrow tin pot and hasn't been repotted in several years. Here in Arkansas, it has just finished blooming. It lives outside until the night temps drop to around 45 F degrees. Then it goes in the greenhouse where low temps average 55F.

It is a dependable and reliable bloomer and I don't pay much attention to the temps it gets other than keeping it frost free.

I will reaffirm much of what has been said:

• While Cym. Golden Elf is touted as a "warmth tolerant" cymbidium, I find it to prefer warmer growing conditions.
• I grow them fairly bright - sort of "cattleya conditions".
• They like deep roots, so tall pots are preferred to squat ones.
• They have very thick roots, so need a very coarse medium.
• They are also quite thirsty and hungry, so the coarse medium implies it needs to be watered a lot.

I grow mine in semi-hydroponics and they love it. My specimen in in a pot 18" in diameter and 24" tall, and has bloomed three times since April. The biggest show had 12 spikes.

this could depend on your fertilizer. I have been told that if a cym recieves to much nitrogen all the potential spikes turn into new growths.
stefan

What is considered to high?

it all depends on how the cym is fertilised. if its a balanced liqiud fertilizer all year, or high nitrogen first, for the growing season, then little or none. The balanced fertilzers usually have quite a high nitrogen level if used over a year.

The fertilizer formula - by itself - is only one aspect. Following on Stefan's post, you have to think in terms of the amount (mass) applied, not just the ratio and concentration.

For example, let's say I have a plant in a 6" S/H pot. That has a volume of 2.5L, of which 50% is taken up by medium and plant, giving me 1.25L of open volume.

I use a nutrient solution that's about 125 ppm N, meaning that each liter contains 0.125g of N nitrogen.

When I water, that pot gets about 2 liters dumped in it, but I lose about 1.5 liters to flushing and drainage, which means that 500ml or 0.0625 grams of nitrogen are left in the medium and in the reservoir. If we assume the plant ultimately takes in a moderate fraction of that - let's say 20% for calculation purposes (I really don't know how much) - then the plant gets 0.0125g N per watering.

During a growing season, a poinsettia needs 1/2 g N to mature. I doubt there's a known figure for each orchid, but let's use that number. That means, therefore, that I need to feed my cymbidium 0.5/0125 = 40 times during a growing season, which is about what I do. If I fed a fertilizer with a different concentration, I'd have to adjust the number of feedings. In reality, a good grower adjusts the concentration and number of feedings accordingly.

Cym Golden Elf; one more question for you...
 

Just wondering about your lighting conditions for this plant. I agree will all of what Ray has said in his post, though I believe that the number one reason most growers can not get Cymbidiums to rebloom is lack of light.
Anyways, just curious,
Adam

I have several Cyms and they do bloom every year. I live in SW Georgia, they are outside in a shade house from March until November. Mine do well with a cold spell, down to 40 degrees before I bring into the greenhouse.(which was just yesterday as it is predicted that the temp will drop to freezing tonite, Nov. 16th. They are in reg. deep clay pots, not reg. orchid pots and I feed regularly with 20-20-20. View my pics and you will see my Cym Dag in bloom.(30 flowers last year)

In So. California they grew best up in hanging baskets, about 2 feet from 80% shade cloth. Lots of spikes and lots of flowers, many flowering twice during the year.
I used a fine bark and perlite mix. They got a lot of water and grew quite well with several L. anceps baskets. The ones that I grew on benches just grew, which at that smaller stage is what I was after. Temps as high as 105 and low as 26 did not bother them. The shade cloth protected them from the 26 degrees, I don't think it got under 32 under the shadecloth. Low temps in So Calif are only for 2 to 3 hours in the morning, wasn't enough to bother them.
They make great basket plants and when they were all blooming the fragrance was terrific.

I find "Golden Elf" to be one of the easiest of all cymbidiums to bloom. It does need bright light 50% or more. Unlike Cattleyas, cymbidiums should not be allowed to dry out - if your are growing with cats - the cymbidium needs more water! It is a warm grower and is reliable for almost everyone here in NE Florida. Fertilize heavy during the growing season " I use Nutracote 12-3-15-7-2 on mine. It is a 180 day controlled release fertilizer. Whatever you use you do not need high phosphorus (the 2nd Number) I apply a tablespoon full per gal pot in late December. I apply it again in June.
The 7 and 2 are calcium and Magnesium - both are needed by cymbidiums. I grow outside year round in NE Florida but mist continously iif it gets below freezing. Golden Elf is said by some not to be too tolerant of freezing temperatures but have not experience a problem myself.