Cool October Orchids

Great show Laurel! Question...is the framework on the green hut dark finished wood, composit, or Aluminum? Copycats want to know...

Bree, I agree that no matter the name, that is a very pretty flower.

Thanks for bringing us up to speed, Laurel. The Aerides deserves the ribbon! Your plants all look happy and healthy. Many of mine are still adjusting to the new lanai.

I agree, that's a beauty, Bree.

My Arundina graminifolia or Bamboo orchid is blooming. It is a terrestrial and lives in a big pot under an oak. It was not happy with the cold of last winter and has been sulking until now. I'm glad to see her back.

Jim

The Spathoglottis plicatas are in their groove and will bloom now till frost.

Jim

I couldn't resist snapping a pic of this NOID Dendrobium.

Jim

Jim, the spathoglottis is terrestrial, also? What a nice clump of foliage as a backdrop for the flowers. Dendrobiums are hard to pass by...and the most reliable for me lately. Cool = bloom. I should focus more on plants that are so eager to perform. LOL on the copycats comment!

Yes, Spathoglottis are terrestrial, Scott. It is growing in a big pot under a live oak tree.

Jim

Scott, so glad you got some answers. Both Mark and Gary are wonderfully generous when it comes to sharing information.

Bree, I looked up Susan Holcombe and think it does look like one. Sorry, I forgot to tag the photos.

Jim, that Spathoglottis is looking very healthy.

Carol, the entire greenhut is constructed out of 1"x3" lattice except for a few 1"x4" pieces on the roof that replaced the old slat roof. We'll save the slat roof for the summer set up. Now that the roof no longer rests on the shelving units we can leave the greenhut intact and move the shelves out to configure with the slat roof as in the original photos of the open air version. I like that there are no heavy 2"x4" members and I can pick up the walls by myself when we move things around. It has two doors for flow through ventilation during those in between temperature times and the roof is removable by section. In fact, we don't screw down the last roof panel until it gets really cold so I can slide it down a few feet and allow the roof to vent too. It's low tech but the only problem has been when I didn't realize how intense the sun was in March and get shade cloth up. Even there, we didn't actually use expensive shade cloth, just two rolls of cheap nylon screening anchored with big office paper clips for the summer. Are you building a greenhut too? I love mine.

I was worried about bringing the Orchids inside. Was watering yesterday and noticed bloom stalks forming on 2 of them. My foliage might not look the best but I guess they are "happy" enough to bloom. I don't think either of these has ever bloomed for me.

wow SCBegoniaguy nice big plant, wonder why it hasn't flowered?
I thought susan holcombe looked like this....

This guys been around for years and blooms no matter how you abuse it.

Ted, that looks like a Prosthechea cochleata, aka Encyclia cochleata. I have one called 'Green Hornet' that seems happy whatever the conditions and blooms constantly. It's a great orchid.

Jim

I went to a rather disappointing plant sale today. So, on the way home I stopped by a favorite place and grabbed something. I'm normally not a "phal person," but I wasn't coming home empty handed. Phal. Crystal Beauty...

And the attachment...

Speaking of phals . . . I hope you don't mind if I pick all your brains again - one of the two 'bargain' phals I got on Labor Day weekend suddenly started looking rather sad - the leaves are still green, but they're limp and sort of wrinkled. It was nearly finished blooming so I cut the flower spike off (it's in a vase on the table still looking pretty with 2 flowers after a week!). Then I hauled it out of the pot and found it squashed in there with a big wad of tightly packed, soggy sphagnum. When I pulled it all out of the roots, there was enough to fill 3 pots, I swear!

Anyway, I carefully trimmed out all the squishy, brown roots and repotted it in Phal mix - bark, coarse perlite and charcoal pieces. I had soaked the mix for a little bit before putting it in. I've been misting the leaves on dry days, and it's under an overhang so it doesn't get drenched when it rains. The plant is not getting any worse, but . . . well, it hasn't perked up, either. It's been a week. Anything else I can do?

It's the one in the white pot, it's sister - as you see - is still blooming wonderfully and very perky.

And now you know why I never use moss. You have done all you can do. Now just wait and hope.

Jim

Right, thanks Jim. Yes I have banished all that moss to mulch the top of one of my other potted plants.

Except, of course, I was given a cutting of a Variegated Vanilla orchid (is it actually an orchid?) and the donor specified I should let it root in a bed of moss . . . so here it is, reposing in state on it's bed of nice fresh, moist moss. So far, so good.

When I do use sphagnum - which is rare - I leave it loose and airy, unlike the big box stores. They pack a half acre of moss into a tiny pot, and that's just not good for anything to breathe through. That's one reason I never mind aerial roots when I see them - because sometimes those rogue roots are saving the plant from problems deep inside the pot we can't see. Like Jim said, I think you've done all you can do. If you happen to have any rooting hormone, you could dust the crown. But don't go out and buy any. It's a coin-toss.

Bree, I think your particular seedling of the Susan Holcombe cross just got an extra dose of color. To my understanding, a cross can have some variety...unless, of course, it's a particular named clone. Maybe yours is just special! :o)

Finally I noticed some sheaths forming on what I call my "fat catts," the big flowering ones. Here's hoping...

dyzzypyxxy- i'd just make sure you didnt leave water sitting in the phals crown misting the plant.
SCBegoniaguy- talking about Portia today i noticed mines in spike..so we'll see soon if it looks like yours. Yeah my susan holcombes a nice colour. Heres a clearer pic...

My vanilla orchid is in plant charcoal, gets hit by the sprinklers 2-3 times a week. After I got him a lovely wooden trellis, he decided to climb the stucco. Go figure!
I hope you have better luck with the phal than I do after they get limp--right now, mine are toughing it out in the pool cage. Back to work-- will load the pictures that I took yesterday and show you the 2 new ones from the orchid sale. My catts are full of huge blooms as well- and the new orchid has some interesting little spikes as well. The Naples orchid sale was well attended-- probably 100 people lined up before the sale began! Such a nice group of members-- we decided to join.

Yeah, I'm contemplating 'losing' the limp phal out in the jungle where it will sink or swim, so to speak. I'll either get to miss its slow painful demise, or I'll come out next spring to a big fat sprig of blooms on a healthy plant. Right now it mocks me every time I walk by it.

So Debi, your vanilla orchid is outside all the time, too? I was thinking I'd have to bring it indoors on the cold nights. Mind you, I'm colder than you are in the winter. The friend who gave it to me said it would cling to whatever came within reach, so I'll have to find something solid for it to grab as soon as I'm sure it's rooted itself.

I'm off to D.C. to work and visit family on Tuesday. We were able to run water lines in the greenhut today and set the timers for heat and water. We made a diagram of how the lines ran before the greenhut was taken apart so it went back up pretty fast. I should have orchids to photo when I return. Promise!

Meanwhile, I told Joan I would look into pots for her and am trying to figure out what to do with Mochimo's photos to send to my friend for ID. The files are large and I don't know how to compress on my end. SO will come to my aid at some point.

Debi, it sounds like you have a happy Vanilla camper.

Ted, Prosthecea cochleata is at the very top of my list of the species orchid every beginner should have. Mine has been blooming for eight months and currently has new leads with sheaths. This is not the best picture but the plant has five spikes and those notches below the current flowers are where flowers have already bloomed. I have spikes that have had more than a dozen flowers and times five that is a huge amount of flowers!

Have a good trip, Laurel!

Elaine, I got a good laugh when you said that Phal mocked you every time you walked past. Funny!

I had planned on buying a new computer for Christmas but found a good one on sale and am here trying to figure it out right now. I'll just pretend like it's Christmas; maybe put some carols on the stereo or something. Anyway, my old HP desktop was 4 years old and showing its years. This is one of those new all-in-one jobbers where the guts are in the monitor and there is no tower. The 23 inch monitor is touch screen and there are no cable connections except the power cord. I loved my old one but this blows it away.

Jim

I took some wrong parts back to Lowe's today, so I had a store credit. I spent it saving this orchid from certain death. It's Dendrobium Blue Twinkle, I believe - an antelope / spatulata type. Sort of an unusual find at a big box store around here. Here are the flowers...

And here's the cubic foot of soaking wet sphagnum moss that was packed halfway up the pseudobulbs in a pot that doesn't breathe. I hate to repot something while it's in flower, but this seemed necessary. You can see the rootball was originally in a small pot of bark, as it should still be, in my opinion.

Really nice antelope, Scott. You would think a Dendrobium named Twinkle would not be an antelope. Interesting. I actually am very fond of sphagnum but then I mount or basket at least half of my orchids. I use it in clay pots but never in plastic or ceramic. It is really a good, cheap medium if you know how to use it and what orchids like it. It is not good for general pot culture though.

Thanks, Jim. And good luck to you with the new computer.

I'll check in while I'm away on what's happening.

Thanks, Laurel. It's parents are Den. Betty Goto x Den. canaliculatum. I've never had an antelope-type, but the AOS culture sheet for this type says they can grow vigorously...and bloom throughout the year. Just my kind of orchid...

Laurel - the weather here in DC/MD is BEAUTIFUL today. Pack an umbrella for tomorrow & winter clothes for the rest of the week!!!! Chilly nites ahead.

My Orchid collecting friend & her Mom are taking a road trip to Apopka. Any named Orchid growers anyone can recommend????

Ref the Apopka road trip, Dmail me.

Jim

Ascda Crownfox Golden Dawn is blooming. Laurel won a blue ribbon with with this one's sister.

Jim

It's always nice to have dancing ladies around the house. This one is called Oncidium butterfly.

Jim

Bc Little Stars has opened its first bloom. Many more to follow.

Jim

Something has been chewing on Lc Warneri - purpurata 'Brazilian' X B. nodosa but I like it anyway.

Jim

Btw- these are my first posts from the new computer so who knows what will happen.

That's still a nice, ELEGANT flower on Lc. Warneri, Jim. With those parents, how could you go wrong?!?

Enjoy your new computer. The touch-screen sounds fantastic! I get used to the touch-screen on my phone, then forget touching does NOT work on my computer. :o) I just picked my laptop up yesterday from the Geek Squad, where it had a hard-drive failure at the ripe old age of FOUR MONTHS. I'm glad they made it right.

These names are killing me. Lc. Eximia is (L. purpurata x C. warneri). I would think that this orchid should be called Lc. Eximia X B. nodosa, making it a Blc. something. Who knows? The name above came right off of the label. All that said, I really like this orchid.

Jim

I was going to send along some sunny pictures, but this depression is depressing!

We're socked in too, Debi, but no rain so far. It looks like it could start any second and I have to go out to choir practice.

Jim

Wow, I didn't even know that system was moving up the coast. But now we're getting some NICE rain. After the orchids get a good soaking, I think I'll do one last (weak) bloom-boosting fertilizer. Then they'll move indoors within a couple of weeks.

I love that Ascda. Jim.
Heres my Paphiopedilum (Dark Spell x Red Glory) x (Purple Velvet x Callosum) neally open.

Beautiful, Bree. I wish I had your touch with the slippers.

Jim

Thanks Jim! we all wish we had your touch with Vandas and everything else you grow.
Guess climate/where we live has a lot to do with it also.