Hey all. I've been looking at my ever-growing orchid collection and realize that 'so many Orchids, so limited room'. At this last Orchid show, I paid a good deal of attention to the small and mini varieties that are happy in 4" and 6" pots or smaller. Thought I'd start a thread on these. Thanks in advance for adding pictures from your personal albums. STU
Bc. Little Mermaid 'Janet'
Den. Aussie Chip (abberana x atroviolaceum) 'Pygmy'
Kir. Stephanie Takasaki 'Jared' Yellow
Potinara Hoku Gem 'Freckles'
Onc Phyllis Envy x Onc William Thurston...... a true mini Onc.
Lc. Angel Love x Skinners
Another pic of Den. Aussie Chip (abberana x atroviolaceum) 'Pygmy' to show the size of the plant. It's in a 4"pot
Beautiful. Angel Love is my fav. Maybe because of the name.
Hap
A great thread Stu. I'm all about the minis since I've got the "so many orchids and so little space" challenge as well. It'll take me a bit to get my act together. I've got a relatively new collection this time around and things are just starting to happen.
L
Eplc. Pixie Charm (Lc. Pixie x Enc. alata ) - orange
Laurel, can't wait to see your collection
NOID Mini Onc.
Onc Phyllis Envy x Onc William Thurston (mostly red)
Onc Popoki 'Mitzii'
Another view of Onc Popoki 'Mitzii' (hopefully in better focus
Onc Twinkle 'Red Fantasy'
Paph. Maudiae 'Napa Valley'
Stu, I've posted what I have over the past year, so nothing is new. My collection is still small in number and I plan to keep it that way. Your Pixie Charm looks intriguing. Can you post a photo that expands the size? I posted elsewhere here about re-namings. Though far from expert on the topic, I do believe your bottom photo of Phyllis Envy X is now considered a Tolumnia (as Ursula posts her's). The NOID is probably one as well.
Laurel
This message was edited Oct 8, 2009 8:53 PM
Zelglossoda 'Calico Gem'
This is the only other pic I have of it. If they were changed recently, it probably does have the old name still.
An example of 5-pot hangers I've started using for 4" and 6" pots. A 4" here.
OOPS....4" hanger
Another 4" hanger
Stu, The photos are beautiful and thanks for the posts. It's the Onc. names that have changed but your Epl. (is that the correct abbrev. as they are catts?) cannot be enlarged. It's lovely, but I wish there was a larger view.
Can you describe the size of the plants you are posting or show something that compares flower or leaf size to what you consider mini? Raymond's Neos would probably fit in great here. Where are you Raymond?
laurel
The Dendrobium Aussie's Chip ( aberrans x atroviolaceum)
http://apps.rhs.org.uk/horticulturaldatabase/orchidregister/orchiddetails.asp?ID=111262
is a cutie!
Stu, you are posting very nice Orchids here. I would think some of them would fit nicely on a windowsill but some might outgrow their small allotted space in a couple of years.
If you are looking into true miniatures, you might want to explore small Pleurothallids ( Masdevallias, Pleurothallis, Sigmatostalix, Lepanthes, Zootrophion, Platystele, Restrepia, Scaphosepalum, Stelis and others). Many of these are warmth tolerant and downright charming.
Also the Genus Bulbophyllum includes some really small species. And as Laurel pointed out, surely you have seen the numerous wonderful Neofinetia falcatas posted by Huiray. Each one is a gem. Look at this thread, which also contains additional minis not mentioned here.
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1001894/
And there are many many many more miniature Orchids, too numerous to mention!
I alone have probably by now posted truly DOZENS of miniature species throughout the years in our monthly threads, I would find it a daunting task to pull them all out and post here again.
I leave you here with my Zygostates apiculata, the whole flowering plant fits into the palm of my hand.
Ursula
PS just at a quick glance, it is Lc. Angel Love x Cattleya skinneri
Laurel, the Epl. abbreviation is from the tag. It's probably the largest of what I would consider 'small' and is in a 5" pot (a strange size, but I had the pot from another plant I transplanted. It probably should have been left off, but the 'Pixie' name triggered 'small' to me.
I concider 'mini' anything that fits nicely into a 4" pot or smaller with plenty of room for growth. The Onc. are true minis (I'm going to use the old names here due to my labeling).
I just bought my first Bulbophyllum this past weekend and am waiting for it to open. I almost got a Zygostates that is about as big as yours Ursula, but held off as I really went for supplies and bought three plants anyway. PS... I'll make the notation in my files of the cross on the Angel Love. I had just copied the tag. Thanks for the info, it's good to know.
The Kir. is more the size that I would consider 'small'. It's in a 6" pot and has plenty of room for growth. It was in a 4" plastic square originally, but I planted it 'up' due to the spread of the growth.
My intention was to get a reference thread for smaller plants. I have MANY Dens., Brassias, Miltonias, etc. that started small and are hugh now (ex. 8" pots or over 2 feet tall and more plant stalks) While I really love them, they would be a bit of a challenge to keep in a smaller place and have room for adding plants. As we see in the month's blooming threads, there are many expansive larger plants. My attempt with this thread is to provide people like myself with a reference point for smaller sized plants that still hold a wallup in color and 'oooh' effect of the blooms. I have mini Dens and Phals as well. Same oomph in a 'shrunk down' plant that I'm trying to find good pictures of. So, reposting of blooms on this thread that are on others is encouraged to show a bit of the variety and growth habits of the smaller plants.
Not sure if this belongs, Cymbidium madidum. The flowers are small but the plant is still close to ordinary size.
Under those definitions/requirements any small seedling or division is a mini......ok
Ursula out.
Hey all. I started this thread to help those like me who are lower on the learning curve gainn some experience through pictures of smaller orchids that are not necessarily represented at the box stores or shows. And I am listing the names of my orchids as they appear on the labels (purchsed from orchid vendors). I know that the nomenclature or catagorization of the orchids has changes seemingly about every month when someone wants to change a name, but it is not meant on my part to mislead anyone. I am happy to be corrected and educated (including on what actually defines a 'mini'), but not condesended to. I am closing this thread (at least for myself) and thank all who have responded. I have already corrected my personal computer album to reflect the corrections given here.
This message was edited Oct 9, 2009 1:28 PM
Stu, I've got a few true minis and then there are the younger ones that are just small. The only current photo I have is this tiny Pleurothallis talpinaria in a two inch pot. It's my first but I'm definitely wanting more. It's been blooming since last April or May, so it's a mini with bang! This is not the best photo. I've posted better photos every month on the bloomers thread. New flowers continually open from the thread-like stems above the previous flowers. Always learning myself, I didn't realize this and was dead-heading the original blooms. Argh! I'll try to update with some other mini pics in a few days. Ursula's recommend list is fantastic if you are wanting to learn about minis. She posted a Pleurothallis from her collection recently that really caught my eye. I adore Restrepias, which were on her list, and had quite a few S. American ones in my early collections. I've not gone looking for them this time around (yet).
An unexpected message from JAX (Jeremy), who is on his way to GA today with new bride in tow, has left me pondering dinner possibilities for tomorrow. No time for new photos now. I'll get back with you soon though.
Laurel
FlStu, If you're still here, can you tell me where you get those pot hangers? I haven't seen anything like that on any of the websites I've looked at.
Carol
Carol. Still here. Overreacted before I spoke to the author.
They're from Hicks Orchids and Supplies
John and Lois Hicks
11410 Judge Ave.
Orlando, FL 32817
407-493-3064 (John's cell)
407-256-8518 (John Jr.'s Cell)
fax: 407-382-5380
house 407-277-0430
Hicksj0430@bellsouth.net
They have the most awesome mix that I've been using (some on the threads will be happy that I don't use pure spagnum). It's called Coco mix and made from Coconut chip, charchol, stalite and sponge rock. Works well for me.
A mini Vanda
rtbkew.... great mini Vanda. I have one Vanda (normal size) as an experiment. As I grow near year round outside and let the sprinklers water, I was afraid Vandas wouldn't survive well. So trying one, as well as the one Paph that I have above, which are also supposed to be tricky here as well.
Laurel. I look forward to viewing Ursula's links. The pleurothallis is really interesting. I really get a kick out of the minute flowers on some of the minis. They really intrigue me. Especially if they are unusual in habit, like rebloming on the same spike.
I'm also somewhat regretting not getting the Zygostates thatI saw last weekend at the show, similar to Ursula's pick, but did get a Bulbophyllum having been intigued by one that she posted a few months ago. Also a mini, this one has fringes on the upper lip of the flower. I bought one just about to open and will post when it does.
Hi all. I just found these minis this summer. Ornithocephalus inflexus.
And Ornithocephalus myrticola.
Stu, Thank you for the info. As they don't seem to have a website, I'll e-mail them.
Carol
This is my favorite mini and one of my most unusual orchids--Trichosalpinx rotundata.
The leaves are like little umbrellas over the flowers. The flowers are tiny...each leaf is only about as big as a nickel.
Very cool orchid, gq!!!
This message was edited Oct 11, 2009 8:34 PM
Gothqueen that is wonderful!
