Australian and New Zealand Gardening: Bromeliads for novices & addicts, October 2012, 5 by splinter1804

splinter1804 wrote:
Hi everyone,

Well another nice day here today following more light showers last night. Although we haven't had rain for a while until these last few days of light drizzle and still there are people "whinging". What does it take to satisfy some people? Maybe we should arrange for it to just rain of a night and be fine the following day, but I'll bet it still wouldn't suit some.

Trish – Regarding the topic of whether we should flush out the vases in brom's or not, I've heard numerous arguments both for and against this practice; but when we look at what Mother Nature does, it's all for a purpose. When the dew, mists or rain fall on the brom's in their natural habitat in trees or rock faces (and most of them do grow in these locations in the wild) it naturally accumulates in the vase. Over time it mixes with bird and small animal droppings, dead insects as well as leaves and twigs which fall from above. As they break down they make a “soup” (for want of a better word) which acts as a continuous dose of a weak organic liquid fertiliser. The only time these vases get flushed out is when there is abnormally heavy or prolonged rain which fills the vases to such an extent that the sheer weight of the water in the vases will cause the plant to actually tip sideways while still attached to the host tree or cliff and empty itself out. Once the weight of the water is no longer pulling the plant over, it again takes on its normal posture and the process is started all over again. Personally I think we have a lot to learn from Mother Nature and by emulating her we can eliminate many of the cultural problems we are often confronted with and in this case we find the flushing out of the vases doesn't need to be done on such a regular basis as is commonly believed.

As for your pic's, well you really will have to stop putting up pic's of orchids or you'll turn me back into an orchidaholic once more. I think the Paph. Rothschildianum x St Swithin is an amazing plant and looks most surreal.

Shirley – I like the plants in the pic's you posted, especially your Neo 'Hot Blooded' which is another of the many beautiful hybrids bred by Alan Freeman; and if it ever wants a holiday please don't hesitate to send it down here as I'm sure we can accommodate it.

Breeindy – That's nice colour you and Shirley are getting in your Neo 'Lila', unfortunately I can never seem to get that much colour in them down here as the red only spreads about half way to the leaf tips, but then that's the price I pay for living in a cooler area. That picture you posted that the seller put up on E bay looks very much to me as though it's been digitally enhanced and I know there is one seller on there who does this to every pic they post, I'd better not say their name in case I finish up in gaol. But it is something to be aware of as some sellers will stop at nothing to sell their plants. In fact I've just spent a few minutes on Ebay and already have found two pic's that are “suss”, see pic's 1 and 2.

Well that's it for today, I've had my little “whinge” so I'll finish firstly with the 2 pic's I spoke of above and Pic 3 which is Billbergia Dorothy Berg, and finally Pic's 4 demonstrates just how unstable my clone of Bill. 'Ralph Graham French' (on the right of Bill.Dorothy Berg) really is while the pups in pic. 5 really confirm it.

All the best, Nev.