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The official Orchid thread!

19K views 135 replies 35 participants last post by  orchidman 
#1 ·
Alright, so I know some of you are really into orchids and I am getting into them! Right now I only have two orchids (Phalaenopis sp. hybrids), but I would like to get more! I don't if I can label this "official", but I am anyway :biggrin:

I just got a new one today from Home Depot, I am going to try and figure out the specie hybrid later.







Lots of pictures of one plant I know, but I was just messing with my camera. I really want to get a DSLR now :)
 
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#30 ·
They don't like ferts!?!?! Oh noes! I need a new mister then. I mist my emersed plants with rootmedic liquid mixed in the bottle. I will use r/o water then.
 
#32 ·
Sorry, I mistakenly said Justin and it was Hydrophyte.
For some reason I do that too...must be that nice red name :)

Do emersed aquatic plants enjoy a good misting with ferts?
 
#34 ·
I water all my orchids with tap water, which is liquid limestone here, and I've never had a problem with it. Granted, during the warmer months I put most all of them outside and let them get rained on whenever I can, so that washes out most of the salts, but I've never had a problem otherwise.

As far as ferts go, don't think that fertilizers are bad for orchids, they need their food too. What you want to do is dilute the fertilizer to 1/8-1/4 strength and feed them that way. Full-strength can fry the plants, no doubt, but I wouldn't withhold fertilizer completely.

My Phalaenopsis and Oncidium are kept indoors during the winter with no extra humidity, and again I've never had a problem with it. Some of my more sensitive species (Masdevellia, Neolehmannia, etc.) are kept in a humid terrarium, but the others don't get any misting or humidifying at all. And the ambient humidity inside my house is somewhere around 2% at the moment. Humidity isn't terribly important for the more common species.

The main thing to remember is that most orchids are epiphytes, and thus will never be soaked for more than a couple hours in nature. Overwatering is the easiest way to kill an orchid, so very well-drained medium is very important.
 
#35 ·
Maybe I'll try some out here in Denver. The humidity is always incredibly low here so it will be a chore to keep them from drying out but we'll see how it goes! At our other place the orchids thrive - they are growing wild all over the place, literally, and you can just hike around for a few minutes and find them everywhere. Never seen a wild orchid in Colorado, though!
 
#39 ·
I will do a fertilized mist once every two weeks on my orchids, and then daily mist's with r/o water :)

I just want to use my r/o water right now, I only have one tank up (no plants...african) so I need my fix.
 
#44 ·
I saw some nice Intergenic Hybrids today, maybe I'll get one next week with my coupon... like Wils. Tigersette Wild Court AM/AOS and Burr. Austin Powers “Sweet Summer Morn”.


Gotta do a little reseach to see which one can do well. And be able to use the Phal soil mix I have..

Do any of you guys buy the cheap orchids that don't have a bloom spike?? They are cheaper... but I don't get them just in case when it does get a flower spike that the flower isn't to my liking.
 
#47 ·
Amphirion - dude, if you ever split any of those minis, hit me up. I've been wanting to get more miniature species for a long time now
 
#48 · (Edited)
@jflng:
well, i live in the San Francisco Peninsula where the ocean water and fog mitigate heat very well to the point where it is not difficult to keep cool-climate species...im growing all my orchids on a sheet of eggcrate diffuser, leaning on a wall which makes a part of a north facing window.

@lego: fo sho---i'll let you know when i'll be dividing...might not be anytime soon as this collection only a year old. :)
 
#50 ·
All my minis are in a fully stocked 30g with a humidifier. I want more, but don't have the room for them right now. I've tried growing some mounted outside of the tank, but it doesn't work for me (them). The weather here isn't quite the same as San Francisco. Must be nice. Post a pic of them all mounted if you can.

I had two Masdevallias. One committed suicide, and the other has done absolutely nothing in a year. It's alive and green, but I'd like to see it flower someday... or at least grow a new leaf.
 
#52 ·
Are there any aquatic orchids? I tried googling, but nothing came up so I doubt there are any. But it is the second largest flowering plant family.
 
#57 ·
You mean like this,
http://www.ncwildflower.org/index.php/plants/details/habenaria-repens/
It really is a treat to see this in situ and they are native to the South. Habenarias in general like a boggy existence and they are so graceful and pretty and most of them live in North America.

No orchid grows submersed, though if that is what you were getting at.
 
#54 ·
The only thing I don't like about orchids is that I can't grow them underwater.

I do grow a lot of them in Semi-Hydroponics. So far, I love it. I'm going to transplant most of the rest of my non-mini collection to semi-hydro soon.

If any of you are interested, this is probably the best resource online for info and supplies:
http://www.firstrays.com/semi-hydro.htm

You can also search the net, and find a ton of info on it. A lot of people are growing orchids this way now.
 
#58 ·
you should take a look at some utricularia species...they arent orchids, but they come pretty darn close!

Utricularia longifolia, U. reniformis, U. humboldtii, and U. nephrophylla have one of the biggest flowers in the genus and can do well partially submerged...
 
#59 ·
orchidman

Ray does seem to know a thing or two about growing orchids.

I just got some fine grade PrimeAgra from him to use on some of my fine rooted orchids. The price and shipping cost will likely prevent me from ever buying it again, but I can already tell that it's better than the hydroton I have been using.

Any environmental changes around the Masd. during the bud blast? I've had that happen to a few orchids after moving them to different rooms.

amphirion

Very nice collection. Everything looks so healthy. I wish I could grow orchids like that. What is the 5th plant down on the right with the largish, succulent looking leaves? I could ask about a lot more, but I'll leave with this for now.
 
#61 ·
i got my prime agra from him at a show, so i didnt have to pay shipping, and he gave me a special deal. but i wouldnt have bought online, im too poor!

no changes for my masdie during the time it was in spike.



my equestris just opened its first bloom
 
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