Orchids Any One?

[chickadeedeedee]

Hi all.

I have several orchids but one of them, Dend. cuthbertsonii, has set seeds and the faded flower with the seed pod is still attached to the plant that continues to bloom.

I have not had an orchid set seed before and kinda-sorta know they need to be incubated in flasks and babied along forever. This is a S. American species orchid mounted on a piece of tree fern bark. Do you think I could try to germinate them on some damp sphag. moss and see if they would grow as they would in the wild or should I try to raise them in a flask... ?

Anyone with experience in this or recommendations please?

Thanks.

3D Chick

[sweetleaf]

How many seed do you have? If it were me I would try the flask method and the sphagnum method and maybe even just put some in a bottle garden with other things like ferns and wait
I like to do little mini trials if I have plenty of seed, but always save some for later, too just in case!

[chickadeedeedee]

Hi and thanks for taking the time to reply.

I don't know how many seeds as they are still attached to the plant. It is one of those very miniature orchids. Hmmmm. I'll need to get some supplies and try both. I also e-mailed someone in Ecuador and asked him for suggestions. No reply yet.

Thanks again.

[The witch]

Is this link of any use to you C3D?

www.kew.org/ksheets/orchid-prop.html

[chickadeedeedee]

Oooooooo! What a fantastic link!!! Thanks so much, The witch!!!

My friend from Ecuador suggested something very similar. Now I need to get my supplies together and have a try. Can't succeed if we don't have an attempt, can we?

Hmmmm. Looks like there goes all my spare time. LOL!!!

[The witch]

I'm really do want an orchid once we have moved house - a white one would be wonderful.

[chickadeedeedee]

They are interesting plants. So many varieties too. Here's how I have some of the mounted orchids hanging inside:



The vine growing toward the ceiling is a Passion flower Vine. We have pulled it down many times and it grows right back up! LOL! Maybe it came from Eduardo's GH?

[chickadeedeedee]

Woooooo Hoooooo! I just got a bunch of South American orchids in the mail.

Stellis sanchezii

Lepanthes pilosella

Ida reichenbachii

Maxillaria fractiflexa ~~~> Three of them due to the generosity of the sender! !

Dracula platycrater

Phragmipedium Olaf Gruss

Trichoceros onaensis

I had not anticipated getting so many. We will need to scrounge up or purchase some more pots / baskets for them this weekend. .

[4pygmies]

This sounds really interesting C3D - I know how busy you are but it would be lovely if you could keep a diary of your efforts here please?

[chickadeedeedee]

Hi. Good morning 4P.

The truth is I don't really *know* orchids. I don't know all the terms for the different plant parts or the light intensity required for blooms and minimum humidity requirements.... I do know what I like when I see it and then I purchase the plant(s). Great system I have isn't it? For whatever reason they thrive for me and bloom, well that is, if I water them.

But I'll give it a go. Where would I post that? Under this thread or make a new one?

[sweetleaf]

chickadeedeedee said:

Hi. Good morning 4P.

The truth is I don't really *know* orchids. I don't know all the terms for the different plant parts or the light intensity required for blooms and minimum humidity requirements.... I do know what I like when I see it and then I purchase the plant(s). Great system I have isn't it? For whatever reason they thrive for me and bloom, well that is, if I water them.

But I'll give it a go. Where would I post that? Under this thread or make a new one?

Brilliant idea! We will learn with you. ;D

This thread is as good as any other, and I like the title. ;D

[chickadeedeedee]

That's a good one Sweetleaf! I'm going to learn! LOL!

OK. I'll post the progress and get some pics up this weekend.

[4pygmies]

What I know about orchids wouldn't fill a postage stamp but I'm very interested to learn! Much more interesting than reading about them in a book. Buying something because you like it and then finding about it is the way most people do things, isn't it?

[emseypop]

A freind of mine had a fella who bought her 11 orchids in total, but they died soon after they split up! I think they are lovely, but I haven't a safe place for house plants at the mo, the kids would eat them or knock them over of water them and flood the house or smear the soil around the walls or something unsavory i'm sure, so i'll just enjoy yours C3D!

[chickadeedeedee]

Progress report.

Haven't done a darn thing! Went to three stores yesterday after work to get some orchid mix to pot some of them up. Not a single store had even one bag. I did water the new arrivals. Maybe I'll try to get some stuff later today. The mix is a combination of sphag moss, bark chunks and bits of charcoal. The medium stays moist but not soggy and drains rapidly. There are many spaces between the various pieces for the roots to pass between.

I just noticed that the little Dracula orchid has a flower spike! .Those are strange little plants. The flower comes from beneath the plant. They need to either be mounted or in a open weave basket to allow the flower spike out!

If you visit www.ecuagenera.com they have / or should have pictured the orchids I just got.

Many of the orchids I have are not in soil. Some are like this Paph.:





Most of my S. American orchids are mounted on tree fern bark and are grown as the epiphytes that they are in nature.

Slacker! I could be looking for orchid stuff instead of playing here.

[sweetleaf]

Wow!

They look so strange, particularly the last one, almost extraterrestrial! ;D The website is fascinating and so scientific, Ill need at least a spare hour or two to look properly, so Ive saved it to my favourites.

[chickadeedeedee]

I think the reason may be it is the time of year to re pot the orchids that have been outside for the summer prior to bringing them inside. I'm late this year. What a surprise! LOL!

The orchids are so diverse looking, aren't they?

I'll try a few sources today for the potting stuff.

[mickthecactus]

I'm glad to see an Orchid thread C3D. It was one of those categories that I jotted down that nobody seems to have started (like pelargoniums, carnations, Chrysanthemums etc. etc.) so please keep it going.

Orchids and epiphytic cacti often share the same perch.

[chickadeedeedee]

Someone who has bloomed *all* summer :

Ephidendrum capricornu.

A native of Peru. Absolutely marveluously striking cooler growing Epiphendrum, upright canes up to 14" to 24" with rank-and-file 3" deep green leaves with purple undersides, large branched pannicles of blooms. One inch flowers whose sepals' backs are hot pink with orange sherbet insides, the pink petals are thread-like, the pink multi-lobed lip is fused to the column thrusting foreward, the apical lobe divided into a pair of legs, the array of flowers resembling an ensemble of dancers. Wooo Hoooo!

It is free flowering throughout the year and grows best in shade to bright light, (1500-2500 Footcandles). Indirect light and pronounced shadowing. Their temperature requirements are best at intermediate to cool ( 52°F min. to 80°F max.)

It is potted in soil and kept evenly moist but not soggy. Outside in the summer he gets 2-3 waterings per week. Inside will vary but gets dry slightly between waterings.

(When time permits I'd like to post who is blooming and their particulars as I did above. LOTS are blooming but I need the time to post. Oooo! I got three huge bags of potting medium for the orchids late today. Woooo Hoooo! )

[4pygmies]

They really DO look like ballerinas! Really very pretty. They are gorgeous plants aren't they? I am like Emsey - nowhere safe to keep them. Shame...... This is a really interesting thread C3D! X

[chickadeedeedee]

LOL! 4P!!! ....nowhere safe to keep them.....

Mine are outside from late May to mid-October. The birds pick at them and steal their ID tags. A Blue Jay flew off with one of them and dropped it. Somehow we found it several days later laying in the garden none the worse for his out-of-pot experience. Squirrels do the same but may also shred them or use them as part of their nesting material. Our new German Shepherd puppy has also helped herself to a few of the blooming orchids. She broke one of the flower spikes of an Oncidium but it's still blooming!

We have no greenhouse so they'll all need to be brought into the living room within the next week before the temps. outside get into the lower 40s F at night.

I want to take the latest orchids out of their newspaper wrappings and get them situated properly. They have waited since last Friday I think, when I got them in the mail. They don't seem upset about just being in a bit of paper. .

[4pygmies]

Tough as old boots then? How odd, considering they look so fragile. I bet I could murder them though! Keep us posted - you are our Orchid volunteer now - to boldly go where no Afer has gone before.......

[chickadeedeedee]

I placed my latest orchids into pots of their very own. They looked quite good in spite having their roots wrapped in sphag. moss and some paper for more than a week. A few other orchids badly in need of new pots were planted too. Only about 30+ more need to be repotted. LOL!

[sweetleaf]

OMG thats some collection you have there C3D! Are you sure you arent in any way an expert?

[chickadeedeedee]

Hi Sweetleaf.

Me? An expert on orchids or anything?!?!? Oh dear me no! I pretend well sometimes.