Blooms very soon!

Welcome back my Phalaenopsis care givers! I hope your Phals have been as happy as mine. I have to say, this week has been pretty warm and dry. It is currently Sunday, March 9, 2014; 10:17 am and 75 degrees. It feels warmer than that, and it shouldn't be this warm in "winter." However, Southern California has literally had the warmest and driest winter to date. It's actually pretty unfortunate. In any case, I read online that once buds have formed on a Phal that warmer temperatures help it grow faster. So there's a plus! 

And this week I (again) have noticed a lot of progress. Those little tiny buds are not so super tiny anymore. The biggest buds are even bigger now and are lightening in color! I'm thinking this means they're becoming close to blooming white? We will see. This blog is suppose to measure an approximate length of time from first spike to first bloom!

Enough of my chattering! Let's check out these photos, which were all take this morning, March 9, 2014.

This week, I'll start with the overview picture and zoom in. As you can see, all the buds have continued to grow. One thing that I noticed different this morning is the very first bud--it's shifted towards the wall. I wonder if this means it will bloom soon.

This is the very first bud. I had to turn the plant around to get a better picture of it. Do you see how it's a much lighter green that the newer buds?

Here is the tip of the spike. Compared to last week, those tiny buds have not only grown in size, but have become more distinct in shape and have sprouted further away from the spike. I wonder if the tip of the spike will give me two more buds, none at all, or more than 2.

 The top picture is a normal view and the bottom picture is the view from underneath. You can see how that first bud has shifted towards the wall. 

I should note that in my research, I learned at this stage of the plant's growth, I shouldn't shift the plant at all.

OK, I admit, I've shifted it a lot to get these pictures, but I do try to put it back in the same spot it was in before :D

You can also see from these pictures that the more mature buds are quite lighter than the newer, smaller ones. 

I can only imagine what next week will bring. I always think that that the current week's photos cannot get more interesting, but they always prove to do so. Let's hope we seem blooms very soon in the upcoming weeks!

Until next Sunday :)

<3 Dianna