How far are your CFLs from your plants? 26 watts would need to be within 6-8 inches of the leaves to have any real substantial effect, especially for catts/dends. The colour is probably not that big of a deal, according to countless arguments and debates I've read online (but who knows...where is the primary peer reviewed literature on this, I ask!)

The sunlight you're describing should be enough for oncidiums - how 'dappled' is this shading though? Vandas need quite a bit of light and are probably not getting enough. Hard to say with the dends which need bright light but not as much as vandas...I'd say catts are a bit above dends.

Also, hard cane dends do not need cool downs and may actually resent that. They will take less water in the winter, mainly because there is less light and warmth and so growth slows down. However, where they come from, there is no drastic cooling.

Seems like everything else is working for you - just try increasing light, warmth in the summer, and watch for bigger and fatter canes/pbulbs (sure sign that blooms should eventually be on their way)

Hi txbelle. Not a definitive answer to your question -- Just wanted to share my experience with Iwanagara Apple Blossom, and a possibility about the Oncid.

I loved Apple Blossom and tried for three years to grow and bloom it, two different varieties. In my best (and final year) I got a lot of growth and about 4 flowers on a big plant overflowing an 8" pot.

I had bought these two ABs in bloom with dozens of flowers on them, so the sparcity of flowers wasn't immaturity. I gave them high outdoor light all summer, and 400 Watt HID in winter. Just couldn't get lavish blooming out of them.

I finally decided that they probably needed a *cooler* and *brighter* winter than I could provide indoors and gave up on them.

Cant say definitively that that's your problem. But try leaving the AB out in fall til the temperature drops a little below 40, see if that helps. It should be able to handle that temperature, with the Dialaelia parent.

Oncididum also bloom better when left outside in the fall. Mine always set spikes in fall once the days got shorter, and the nights cooler. This was true even for the ones that bloomed a spike or two at other times. The year I left them out to 39F or so, I got the very best blooms. These definitely bloom better when left outdoors from about July and August on thru til nearly frost.

Thank you both for your opinions. I think I'll leave my Dens inside in the fall and kick the Onc and AB outside in the fall with my other orchids. Calvin, my lights are about 6-8" above my Onc and Dens. The dappled shade provided by my Oak tree is really just that - dappled. At no time are the plants in complete shade - except, perhaps, very late afternoon when my neighbor's tree casts shade that direction. If anyone else wants to chime in, feel free!

I found that my Iwanagaara Apple Blossom bloomed best when extremely pot bound.