My mother's indoor orchid has stopped blooming. She is going to move
it to a dark spot for the winter. Should she also remove the stems? 
Thank-you for your help.

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Request for Question Clarification by digsalot-ga on 27 Nov 2002 18:10 PST

Lighting requirements and care are unique to each variety of orchid. 
Some need bright light and some should never come near it.  What
variety of orchid are you asking about?  There are a hundred possible
answers otherwise.

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Clarification of Question by lorstan-ga on 13 Dec 2002 06:22 PST

phalaenopsis

Lorstan-ga

Hi! As an avid collector and caretaker of rare cacti and plants, there
are a few things about the care of phaleanopsis that your mother
should know.

First, the phaleanopsis should not be moved to a dark spot during the
winter, but rather somewhere that will still get indirect winter
sunlight (i.e. somewhere where it will not be prone to the glare of
midday sun, especially in winter climates where the sun glares off the
snow.).

Second, if your mother has central heating, it will cause the air to
be drier than normal. This will require her to mist her orchid a bit
more to compensate.

Third, with regard to the stems, note what the following website
dicussing the care of phaleanopsis has to say about each spike of your
plant:

"When the last flower of the spike fades, you should examine the
spike, looking for small fleshy bumps or nodes. From the base of the
spike count out 3 nodes (count only the green fleshy nodes - ignore
any that are dried out). Cut the spike one inch above the third node."

--(http://www.plant-care.com/PlantTips/2000/011400.htm) 

Please note that this should only be done to healthy plants (if your
mother's plant is looking weak, she should NOT trim the stems in this
manner). This method can actually force new blooms at the end of the
flowering season. If it has been quite some time since her plant
stopped blooming, she should keep the plant as is.

Most phalaenopsis related trimming is used to force new blooms or to
cut away dead/rotted roots during repotting.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask for clarification!

You may also want to direct your mother to the following websites that
discuss the care of her particular variety of orchid.

http://www.easyorchids.co.uk/phalaenopsis/
www.orchidsanfrancisco.com/caresheets/phalaeno.htm 
http://www.klehmgrowers.com/phal%20care.htm
http://www.plant-care.com/PlantTips/2000/011400.htm

Search Strategy:

"winter care phalaenopsis"

Best Regards,
leeann-ga

Digsalot is right; each variety of orchid has unique requirements,
though I haven't heard of one that needs to be moved to the dark to
bloom.  Two of my orchids, a Phalaenopsis and Oncidium actually bloom
DURING the winter months. Some orchids require a drop in nighttime
temperatures to trigger blooming.  I recommend an inexpensive book,
Orchids by I.D. James, Firefly publishers.  With plenty of
illustrations, it should help you identify your orchid and suggest
appropriate care.