We have gotten a few new plants in the last few months.
We got a Bulbophyllum frostii. The flowers look like little shoes!! It wasn't in flower when we got it, so we'll see if we can make it flower this summer.
From the Orchid Society fall auction we got a Laelia purpurata var. carnea and a Dendrobium Hibiki "Tiny Bubbles". We got the Laelia because I just really like the flowers and the plant is very well behaved. We got Tiny Bubbles because it is just so cute, and we have really enjoyed our Dendrobium bracteosum which is similar. Well, really we got it because Steven was trying to drive up the bidding price with another lady from the Orchid Society that was buying tons of plants...and then she backed out haha. We are happy we have it though. Tiny Bubbles is still flowering since September.
I convinced Steven to give me a BLC. George King "Serendipity" for Christmas. I have been hankering after one for a while now and I finally got it. Our bad kitties decided they really liked chewing on flowers though so the flowers fell off prematurely. That was really annoying. I just can't watch them all the time, and they can get just about everywhere I could think to put it, except back at the greenhouse, but then I can't enjoy it. So now I have to wait for that to flower again.
Friday, January 9, 2015
The Dearly Departed and other sadness
We have had a few things die lately or they were just sickly and we threw them away.
We got a big cattleya from the Orchid Society raffle that ended up flowering soon after we got it. The flower was red/maroon with a red lip. We didn't care for it. The flower also had some funny colorations on it that made us think it had virus. Once it was done flowering we threw it in the compost pile. The plant part looked reasonably healthy, so we felt bad pitching it, but a local expert said the virus will often first be noticeable in the flowers then spread to the leaves.
The Paphiopedilum bellatulum also died. I think we watered it too much because most of the roots were dead. We tried to put it in rehab but it just got worse and worse. We finally just threw it out. That was really sad because we had been so excited about this plant. We specifically searched for and bought it because we think they look so cool. When we told Paul we had killed it, he said they are one of the harder ones to grow. Maybe we will try again sometime... Maybe we will practice on some easier paphs first.
One of the bunch of Phals we had gotten from a garden center just kept looking really bad, and we learned that it probably had leaf mites. We weren't that attached to it, so we pitched it.
The Masdevallia veitchiana that Steven got me for my birthday died too. It seemed to be doing well until May. We put it briefly in the kitchen window, and I think we cooked it's poor roots because the kitchen gets a lot of sun, and it was getting warmer and we didn't realize. The leaves got all these sunken brown spots on them and were falling off one by one. We tried to rehab it with no success. It finally totally kicked it over the summer. I think it was just too hot for it with us. I really like masdevallia's because they are so lovely, but I don't know if they are the right plants for us :(
We nearly killed our Encyclia tampensis AGAIN. But I think we have put it in rehab in time. The roots were rotting- so I guess we were not letting it dry out enough. They are twig epiphytes in the wild so they dry quickly- however they also have a lot of humidity and dew fall during the dry season. We un-potted it and let it sit bare root for a couple weeks until it started to make new roots. We mounted it this time since we can't seem to stop over watering it. We will mist it every day or every other day and see how it does. So far the little baby roots are still there. I am feeling optimistic about it. It is so interesting how much things change seasonally. In the early summer we were watering it more frequently and it seemed to respond well to that, and it flowered nicely. I guess we didn't cut down on water properly- or got too over-excited with the watering as it came into the end of the summer, because that's when it started to look a little sad.
A couple of things were in bud but didn't end up flowering
Phragmipedium bessae hybrid had buds, but we repotted it because it was stressed from being too hot. So the buds ended up rotting. That was sad, but I don't feel so bad, because I am reasonably confident we can make it happen again.
Steve Stevenson had a bud too, but it rotted from getting water in it at the greenhouse a couple weeks ago. That is more upsetting because we have never seen it before. According to google images it isn't going to look like a favorite, so this way it will get to live with us for a while longer. We are trying to make a philosophy of giving away things we don't really like. However, those are also the things that we made flower!! Tricky trade-off.
We got a big cattleya from the Orchid Society raffle that ended up flowering soon after we got it. The flower was red/maroon with a red lip. We didn't care for it. The flower also had some funny colorations on it that made us think it had virus. Once it was done flowering we threw it in the compost pile. The plant part looked reasonably healthy, so we felt bad pitching it, but a local expert said the virus will often first be noticeable in the flowers then spread to the leaves.
The Paphiopedilum bellatulum also died. I think we watered it too much because most of the roots were dead. We tried to put it in rehab but it just got worse and worse. We finally just threw it out. That was really sad because we had been so excited about this plant. We specifically searched for and bought it because we think they look so cool. When we told Paul we had killed it, he said they are one of the harder ones to grow. Maybe we will try again sometime... Maybe we will practice on some easier paphs first.
One of the bunch of Phals we had gotten from a garden center just kept looking really bad, and we learned that it probably had leaf mites. We weren't that attached to it, so we pitched it.
The Masdevallia veitchiana that Steven got me for my birthday died too. It seemed to be doing well until May. We put it briefly in the kitchen window, and I think we cooked it's poor roots because the kitchen gets a lot of sun, and it was getting warmer and we didn't realize. The leaves got all these sunken brown spots on them and were falling off one by one. We tried to rehab it with no success. It finally totally kicked it over the summer. I think it was just too hot for it with us. I really like masdevallia's because they are so lovely, but I don't know if they are the right plants for us :(
We nearly killed our Encyclia tampensis AGAIN. But I think we have put it in rehab in time. The roots were rotting- so I guess we were not letting it dry out enough. They are twig epiphytes in the wild so they dry quickly- however they also have a lot of humidity and dew fall during the dry season. We un-potted it and let it sit bare root for a couple weeks until it started to make new roots. We mounted it this time since we can't seem to stop over watering it. We will mist it every day or every other day and see how it does. So far the little baby roots are still there. I am feeling optimistic about it. It is so interesting how much things change seasonally. In the early summer we were watering it more frequently and it seemed to respond well to that, and it flowered nicely. I guess we didn't cut down on water properly- or got too over-excited with the watering as it came into the end of the summer, because that's when it started to look a little sad.
A couple of things were in bud but didn't end up flowering
Phragmipedium bessae hybrid had buds, but we repotted it because it was stressed from being too hot. So the buds ended up rotting. That was sad, but I don't feel so bad, because I am reasonably confident we can make it happen again.
Steve Stevenson had a bud too, but it rotted from getting water in it at the greenhouse a couple weeks ago. That is more upsetting because we have never seen it before. According to google images it isn't going to look like a favorite, so this way it will get to live with us for a while longer. We are trying to make a philosophy of giving away things we don't really like. However, those are also the things that we made flower!! Tricky trade-off.
Tangerine has finally flowered!!
BLC "Sweet Treat" (BLC "Pokai Tangerine" x Cattleya "Chocolate Drop") or Tangerine as I refer to it- has finally flowered after 3 years! It only made 1 flower because it is only it's first time flowering, but it was exciting nonetheless! We didn't really know what it would look like. I think most of what made it flower this year was just size and maturity. I also moved it partway through the summer to get a bit more light and it liked that. I also misted the roots that are all outside the basket daily or every other day.
We are excited that it bloomed finally, but to be honest we are not that excited about how it looks. We are thinking about contributing it for the raffle at the Orchid Society meeting. It's hard though because I have gotten kind of attached to it, taking care of it the last 3 years. There's also the fact that we can apparently have success with it, which is more than I can say for some of our plants. We know how to grow Cattleyas, Oncidiums and Phals, but don't have much luck with some of the other things- like Paphs and vandaceous things.
Cattleya cernua
Cattleya cernua flowered really well this year after skipping last year. We gave it more sun this year, and I think that is what did it, also a bit more water since there is not a lot of medium in it's basket. It flowered in the beginning of November this year rather than in September like it did last time. I am curious to see when it flowers in the future- will it be on a November or September time schedule.
It won a little prize at the Orchid Society meeting which was really fun.
I have not seen much of any root growth on all the new growths it has made, which worries me. I am hoping it will make roots while it is living at the greenhouse this winter since the humidity is good there.
It won a little prize at the Orchid Society meeting which was really fun.
I have not seen much of any root growth on all the new growths it has made, which worries me. I am hoping it will make roots while it is living at the greenhouse this winter since the humidity is good there.
July/August Flowering Update
We have had a fair amount of flowering going on here.
The most exciting thing has been that Phragmipedium longifolium has just opened up it's first flower yesterday. Phrags are kind of high maintenance because they like to be watered every day, but at the same time that makes them sort of easy. No worrying about when to water- just water all the time. We definitely would like to get more of them.
Bulbophyllum makoyanum went nuts in a big flush this year. It had 10+ flowers on all at the same time. It is still flowering, but not quite so spectacularly as the first flush. It really put on a ton of new growth this year over the winter at the babysitting greenhouse.
The Oncidium Gold Medal is flowering away too. It doesn't have quite such a ridiculous 4ft spike as Gower Ramsey has, but it is lovely none the less.
Phragmipedium bessae hybrid has 2 spikes with buds on, but I am still anxiously awaiting them to plump up and open.
Dendrobium bracteosum has opened up a bunch of flowers which are adorable.
The most exciting thing has been that Phragmipedium longifolium has just opened up it's first flower yesterday. Phrags are kind of high maintenance because they like to be watered every day, but at the same time that makes them sort of easy. No worrying about when to water- just water all the time. We definitely would like to get more of them.
Bulbophyllum makoyanum went nuts in a big flush this year. It had 10+ flowers on all at the same time. It is still flowering, but not quite so spectacularly as the first flush. It really put on a ton of new growth this year over the winter at the babysitting greenhouse.
The Oncidium Gold Medal is flowering away too. It doesn't have quite such a ridiculous 4ft spike as Gower Ramsey has, but it is lovely none the less.
Phragmipedium bessae hybrid has 2 spikes with buds on, but I am still anxiously awaiting them to plump up and open.
Dendrobium bracteosum has opened up a bunch of flowers which are adorable.
Tuesday, July 1, 2014
New Addition, Greenhouse, and Repotting
New Additions
We have a couple of new additions. One is called Potnaria Frank Gilmore "Mendenhall" x BLC. George King "Serendipity". I think it is orangey peachy colored looking it up online, which is exciting because I've been hankering after a cattleya of that color. We got it from the potting party for the orchid club. The Club has a bench at the Orchid Trail with donated plants. They use the donated plants for raffle prizes, and many were in serious need of repotting. We made 7 divisions of that cattleya and were allowed to take one home!! It is planted in a 5" clay orchid pot with standard bark mix. We used dry bark for potting this time instead of wet bark. We decided to try that as an experiment to see if they root better. We didn't water for an entire week. We normally would wait 2 weeks, but it is just so hot in the greenhouse that we didn't want to risk it. It is already starting to make new roots from the new growths which is great!!
We have a couple of new additions. One is called Potnaria Frank Gilmore "Mendenhall" x BLC. George King "Serendipity". I think it is orangey peachy colored looking it up online, which is exciting because I've been hankering after a cattleya of that color. We got it from the potting party for the orchid club. The Club has a bench at the Orchid Trail with donated plants. They use the donated plants for raffle prizes, and many were in serious need of repotting. We made 7 divisions of that cattleya and were allowed to take one home!! It is planted in a 5" clay orchid pot with standard bark mix. We used dry bark for potting this time instead of wet bark. We decided to try that as an experiment to see if they root better. We didn't water for an entire week. We normally would wait 2 weeks, but it is just so hot in the greenhouse that we didn't want to risk it. It is already starting to make new roots from the new growths which is great!!
The other new addition is Dendrobium "Banana Royal". Someone at the Orchid Trail was repotting their's and gave us the old back bulbs. We potted it in a little 2-4" pot with bark mix. We will see if anything happens. It has yellow flowers. I really like some of our Dendrobiums, but I'm not feeling fully committed to them being awesome in general like I do for some of the genera. Like Bulbophyllums: They all look cool and interesting.
Greenhouse
We have two box fans going in the greenhouse right now, which seems to be helping keep the temperature down and the plants from looking sad. I think the tons of air movement is making them be okay with the high temps. It has gotten up to 106 degrees in there even with one fan on. In order to try and reduce the temperature we also got some gravel on craigslist for the floor. We pulled up most of the cardboard we had on the floor, except for one layer, and covered that with gravel. My theory is that the rocks are naturally cooler than cardboard and will help wick the cool from the dirt underneath up into the greenhouse. We can also water the rocks when it's going to be hot for evaporative cooling. It seems like it might be working so far, but it's hard to tell.
Repotting
I repotted the Love Orchid. It still has a couple of flowers on it, but they are coming to a close. I was reporting Phals from work and had been planning to do the Love Orchid too. I just wanted to see what was going on inside it's pot. It hadn't been repotted for at least a year and I wanted to make sure the moss was still ok in there. I think the moss was actually still ok for a while longer yet. Since I had already pulled it out, Steven thought I might as well just go ahead and give it new moss. He said the moss smelled fungusy. So it's potted back in to it's same pot with new moss. It hasn't dropped it's flowers yet either.
We repotted the Phragmipedium bessae hybrid a couple weekends ago. We wanted to put it in a clay pot, so it's root zone would be cooler. We got this idea from a talk we heard at the orchid club meeting. So we redid it in new bark in a 6" clay pot. We put moss on top to make sure any new roots had something to grow into. The leaf tips are still browning which I still don't understand. Maybe it's a water quality problem? Maybe we need to test our water. We water the Phrags every day to make sure they are staying wet enough. Phrag bessae also still sits in a water dish. It hasn't shown much in the way of distress from being repotted. I hope it stays that way.
BLC. Irene Finney got repotted too. It was in a tiny plastic pot with lava rock that was falling over all the time. It now has a 6" clay orchid pot with standard bark mix. It seems to be doing just fine, making new roots etc. I don't think it's big enough to flower yet. It's a slow grower with the big leaves. Some of our cattleyas just seem to be really slow moving.
I also need to repot the Octoporchid and haven't had a chance yet. It is still flowering, but starting to make a new growth, and that new growth will not fit in it's old basket. Plus the moss is old and probably really nasty.
More Flowers Have Opened
Miltassia
Miltassia Shelob "Tolkein"has also opened up its flowers perfectly. None of the buds blasted like they did last year. The flowers are also lasting really well. They are all even right side up except for one of them. They have already been on for a couple of weeks. I find it interesting how it seems to grow in the winter time. A lot of the plants grow in the summer, but this one seems to mostly grow in the winter. We'll see what it does this year.
Fred Orchids
Both of the Fred Orchids are going to flower. Gower Ramsey has a giant 4ft tall spike. It doesn't have a crazy amount of flowers, just a giant spike. I need to look up what causes huge long spikes like that. I wonder if it is a fertilizer or a light thing... Gold Medal is also starting to make a spike. Gold Medal is not very big, so I am impressed with it's ability to make a flower spike so small. I call it my "indicator plant" because the pseudobulbs very obviously start to shrivel when it wants water then plump back up again when it's happy. It seems to be the only plant that really does that. Most of them don't plump back up.
Encyclia Cindy
Miltassia Shelob "Tolkein"has also opened up its flowers perfectly. None of the buds blasted like they did last year. The flowers are also lasting really well. They are all even right side up except for one of them. They have already been on for a couple of weeks. I find it interesting how it seems to grow in the winter time. A lot of the plants grow in the summer, but this one seems to mostly grow in the winter. We'll see what it does this year.
Fred Orchids
Both of the Fred Orchids are going to flower. Gower Ramsey has a giant 4ft tall spike. It doesn't have a crazy amount of flowers, just a giant spike. I need to look up what causes huge long spikes like that. I wonder if it is a fertilizer or a light thing... Gold Medal is also starting to make a spike. Gold Medal is not very big, so I am impressed with it's ability to make a flower spike so small. I call it my "indicator plant" because the pseudobulbs very obviously start to shrivel when it wants water then plump back up again when it's happy. It seems to be the only plant that really does that. Most of them don't plump back up.
Encyclia Cindy
Encyclia Cindy is flowering too! It made a really nice spike this year with quite a few flowers. It made a giant fat pseudobulb at the greenhouse over the winter. It is working on making another growth, but it is sort of on hiatus while it's been flowering. The flowers are starting to drop off, so the growth will probably start growing again soon! These flowers don't last terribly long. Just a couple of weeks rather than months like some of them.
Oncidium Sharry Baby
Oncidium Sharry Baby is also flowering. It made two spikes, but only really had one at a time. The first one's flowers seemed to fall off quickly. I think that's because it was really hot in the greenhouse during that time. The second spike seems to be lasting a while. This plant would like repotting too. The newest growths are not going to fit in the pot.
Mystery Phalaenopsis
One of the mystery Phals also flowered. It has pink blotches. I don't think it's my favorite, but it's a fun one to bring to work or otherwise loan out. It also needs repotting, but I will do that once it finishes flowering.
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