Orchid care

[SandiF]

Who here has success growing orchids? I've tried growing orchids indoor and had no success. The 3 that I came home with last month are doing so so. Took me some hours to find the specimen details for these orchids. Turn out one is endangered or a threatened species. It is Brassavola subulifolia Lindl and it's endemic to Jamaica. This gives me enough incentive to really get this orchid to grow and try to mimic it's natural environment as much as possible.

I planted it in orchid soil and staked it against bamboo stalks. I noticed the stalks are shriveling at the base. It's getting filtered light. I suspect the living room may be too dry...even though I have an air filter going. Mi nuh waan kill these orchids.

The other two orchids are ONCIDIUM.

[loops]

Re: Orchid care

i've got 3 sandi...two that are sending up buds right now. I need to run to Staples but i'll be back with more details...such that i have.

i consider what i'm doing luck.

brb

[7777]

Re: Orchid care

i know the ones I keep at home, needs constant spristing...(spinkled with wata)..
What kinda environment was it in. Was it a dry soil dat u tek it outta. what it constantly inna full sun, or it did deh under tree.
LastAug and Oct when me go a ja, me notice (fe de first time) dat jamaica had orchids. never noticed before before. but the ones me see, was inna low light (hotel setting) and the others me noticed was living offa a host tree, but wasnt in good nor bad sun..
The ones living offa de host, did under a june plum tree..and getting kinda filtered light..
so me tink u need fe member what environment it was living in and try to duplicate dat..

On HGTV

[johnnycakes]

Re: Orchid care

Sandi F,
Most orchids require high humidity to mimic the environment in which they naturally thrive. Think about how humid the tropics are and how dry your house is.
A heated house in the States is not a good place for orchids. In the winter months when the heat is on, you'd need, as said, to mist them throughout the day and keep the potting medium moist at all times. They'd be fine in the summer time with the windows open and the humidity high.
You could try making a clear plastic tent that would almost enclose the orchids, keeping the air around them moist but open enough so that mold does not start to grow.
Very fussy plants.

Cactus are better suited to heated homes where the humidity is often around 15% which is lower than it is in the desert.

[SandiF]

Re: Orchid care

I started misting them since yesterday.
I got them in Portland where the avg temp is around 80-85 deg/F with moist conditions...you know how it rains frequently in Portland. By location, they were getting full morning sun, but by 11am it seem more like filtered sunlight. All the orchids were attached to an host plant. The Brassavola was rooted in a dead stump and wrapped itself all over a tree.

There are species of orchids that are endemic to Jamaica. Those plants that we've often seen growing on light poles, or growing off other trees are most likely a species of orchid.

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: 7777</div><div class="ubbcode-body">i know the ones I keep at home, needs constant spristing...(spinkled with wata)..
What kinda environment was it in. Was it a dry soil dat u tek it outta. what it constantly inna full sun, or it did deh under tree.
LastAug and Oct when me go a ja, me notice (fe de first time) dat jamaica had orchids. never noticed before before. but the ones me see, was inna low light (hotel setting) and the others me noticed was living offa a host tree, but wasnt in good nor bad sun..
The ones living offa de host, did under a june plum tree..and getting kinda filtered light..
so me tink u need fe member what environment it was living in and try to duplicate dat..

On HGTV </div></div>

[SandiF]

Re: Orchid care

The winter dry air has always been a challenge for my tropical plants. The humidifier is helping but I think the daily direct misting to the orchids will be much better. I'm not certain about keeping the potting soil moist at all times....hmmm...all instructions say to water after the soil is dried.

An idea of what the Brassavola looks like ... It has long pencil thin stalks with little knobs at every inch. The little knobs are where the little feet/root grows out, which would be the ideal point to cut for transplanting.

The planting problem I'm having with the Brassavola is I don't know how to plant it! I'm thinking of mounting it against a stump that has some moss arranged on it. Right now the stalks are just planted in a pot filled with orchid medium.


<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: johnnycakes</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Sandi F,
Most orchids require high humidity to mimic the environment in which they naturally thrive. Think about how humid the tropics are and how dry your house is.
A heated house in the States is not a good place for orchids. In the winter months when the heat is on, you'd need, as said, to mist them throughout the day and keep the potting medium moist at all times. They'd be fine in the summer time with the windows open and the humidity high.
You could try making a clear plastic tent that would almost enclose the orchids, keeping the air around them moist but open enough so that mold does not start to grow.
Very fussy plants.

Cactus are better suited to heated homes where the humidity is often around 15% which is lower than it is in the desert. </div></div>

[SandiF]

Re: Orchid care

This isn't the exact Brassavola I got in Portland, but this is close to what it looked like at my aunt's house. They said it blooms in April to May....lovely flower, most aromatic scent.

[loops]

Re: Orchid care

wow, thats pretty.

i have two varieties of orchids i'm having pretty good luck with, despite the dry air in my home, especially this time of year with the woodstove going.

i have two phalapenopsis and one dendrobium. all 3 are potted in the original medium i bought them in....which is basically bark. all i do to care for them is take them out of the pots and run them under running tap water for a bit once a week or so, the put them back in the pot. no standing water. they're in a south facing window, in a room that has no furnace registers.

i'm pretty excited that two of them are budded...can't wait to see the flowers again.

[SandiF]

Re: Orchid care

Well, I did my job. Mounted the orchid on a piece of wood (cedar) that's been layered with spanish moss. I made sure to wet down the moss. Then I arranged the orchid on the moss covered wood. Planted the wood with orchids on it into a pot, filling it with fir barks.

I think I did good...hope the results are good. [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/laugh.gif[/img] Btw, I got myself 'Complete Guide to Orchids'. Some awesome pics and lots to read. Think I'm now hooked on orchids.

[7777]

Re: Orchid care

I too am hooked on orchids, but I have had much success in growing dem in the house in the winter, but never to the point of reblooming..
Some have some fragrant smell us see, but others dont..
I was told to have dem rebloom, I have to let dem lay dormant fe while, and dem water dem after a couple of months..
Some orchids never rebloom (I just learnt dat. ) It depends on the variety..
The large variety that I told u about that is sold in Sams, is
phalacnopsis (sp) and I found out tht this type reblooms. I am so excited.. [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/70371-jump.gif[/img]