Does anyone know of a supplier or retailer for Bulbophyllums? I hate to admit it but I have no idea of a good reliable source.
I thought that I would like to try a few underlights either now or next spring. With shows being canceled, mail order might be my best option. I am thinking of trying things like echinolabium, lowii, and others of the larger bulb types.
Eventually I could try other types as well. I now about Andy's Orchids of course and a grower like Bill Thoms. But Bill is not retail as far as I know.
My limited research has turned up a few vendors who carry a few plants here and there but they seem a bit pricey.
Any suggestions anyone?

How about Marlow Orchids ?
https://shop.marlowsorchids.co...

They announced that they will close their doors at the end of the year. Very sad!!

Thanks for the tip Ursula. I will have to check them out. There are so many neat things there!

Yes, Bill Thoms has a website
bulbophyllums.com

Wow. He is selling! That's great.
Thanks.

Bill had some beautiful Bulbophyllums available. I ordered a Laura Newton, a Laura Newton hybrid, a Simply Aghast, a bicolor, and a few others.
I was going to wait for next Spring but I decided to take advantage of a 68-74 degree window that we have coming in the mid week. We are going to have some warmer weather so it seemed like a good time.
Bill e-mailed me back saying it was good to hear from me. He would pick out some special things and ship Monday. Cool!

As a note, it looks like very little will be happening up here with shows through March. The Cleveland Show for mid February is in jeopardy, the Greater Lansing Show for late February is gone, Ann Arbor is probably canceled. I heard that they are reconsidering the Grand Rapids Show for late January. Now it too may be canceled.
I had to "feed my habit" some how. Might as well be Bulbophyllums!!

Yes, Motes had a great sale and I ordered a big box and the other Tampa Orchid Society had Fred Clarke speak via zoom. He offered at least 20% off so I ordered a bunch of things. Our mid Florida Growers are still doing open houses. Next weekend Jim Roberts @ Florida Suncoast is hosting an event with Bredren Orchids, Accent Orchids , The supply folks from Miami OFE and a couple of potters. It will be like a mini show. We are still doing judging here Bill Thoms took 2 of his Lindsey Paris plants and they both were awarded...84 and 86!

Oh boy Lindsey, they must have been really nice!!

Well, the Bulbophyllums have arrived! I must say that they came through their journey in great shape and they look real healthy!
Bill was so generous with what he sent along with a couple of freebies. Everyone loves freebies. I hope to be posting images in the future as some of these guys bloom!
Lindsey, he is such a nice guy and Doris is a classy lady! I really miss seeing them. I learned so much from Bill when I transferred from the Northeast. He really helped me to really see all the fine details of Judging Paphiopedilums. Information that you could never get from a book but very important information nonetheless.

Oh I'm so glad to hear that you got a great shipment!
Bill is so knowledgeable but not pompous , he is incredibly generous in sharing his tricks and tips. I know I have become a much better grower ( with a LONG ways to go ) by getting to work with him every week at the University. He loves teaching and sharing the joy of growing, blooming and showing these amazing plants.
Which plants did you end up getting, Bill?

A Bulbophyllum Laura Newton, a Bulb. Simply Aghast I think, an awarded Bulbophyllum bicolor division, a Laura Newton hybrid.
Oh a frostii too! And a frostii hybrid.

I was looking for compact growers, not echinolabium stuff because of my limited height underlights. And I think I ordered a Cirrhopetalum mastersianum, orange flowers in a circular umbel.
I was looking for those with green grape sized bulbs and maybe 5-6" tall overall above the rim. Things that stayed tight on the rhizome.

All right I have the list:
Bulb. Herkules X Laura Newton-2ea.
B. Mastersianum
B. Faceatum X B. Mandibulare
B. More Than Aghast
B. Michael Freel
B. Macrobulbon
B. Laura Newton
B. Jose Davis
B. Frostii
B. Bicolor 'Kaylee Marie' AM/AOS 5-6 plants
B. A-dori-bil Candy Ann 'Lavender Lady -2 plants
B. uniturbum in bloom!!
B. Clouds Goldrush

I ordered 9 plants and when all is said and done, I could end up with close to 20 plants!!! Unbelievable!! See what happens when we make good friends! I am really really grateful!!

The note said, "I know with all of your POO, you will grow them just fine!" In typical Bill fashion, at first I did not know what he was saying? But then it said at the very bottom that poo was "Powers of Observation"! See, he knows what a stickler I am for growing orchids correctly!
Just amazing!!

Woohoo!! I would be dancing!! That is a great list, some really neat blooms. Enjoy!
Looking forwards to the pics.

Me too.
But if I dance, I might brake somethin'!!

That's a fabulous list, I'm sure you'll be pleased.
Ask him to put you on his mailing list for his weekly
'Walk and Squak' videos from USF botanical garden
Where we all volunteer on Thursday to maintain the
University orchid collection. There's always something of interest.

I did that. Also on his e-mail list for specials.

Now that I have these Bulbophyllums, how in the world will I attempt to grow them??? ❓❓❓❓❓❓

I have 2 big points rolling around my head. Bill Thoms, the best Bulbophyllum grower on the planet for years says to grow them in "bright shade". When I first heard this I said to myself, what in the world is bright shade? But I thought about it and reasoned, well there is very little sun involved. But they obviously need more light then a typical Phalaenopsis! So I figured to grow them down low in my collection. Make sure in my orchid jungle that there were plants growing above them. That seemed like bright shade. Plus they need to stay evenly moist. So would a fine fix work, or would sphagnum be best? I could not decide so I tried both. The smaller plants liked sphagnum more, the larger ones seem to prefer bark.
Now recently I heard a virtual speaker up here give his opinion. He grows in a fine mix. His mix featured bark, sponge rock and charcoal. About 75% bark to be precise.
But every other cultural point was WARM. It got to be a bit humorous. Water thusly and WARM. This kind of light and WARM. This humidity and WARM. Okay, I got it, WARM!!


Now what am I going to try???
1. Plastic pots
2. Fill pot half way with sphagnum moss
3. Top half with a seedling mix
And of course WARM!!
And they will be on the duller ends of the light fixtures, 12" below the tubes.
I'll keep posting results!

I will leave it up to Ursula and Australis if perhaps this could be a separate thread or even a sticky!!

It's a sticky!

Well, I think that it might be a cool idea. We have the Phalaenopsis one and now a Bulbophyllum one, what does everyone think about one on standard Cattleyas, one on smaller Cattleyas like Little Stars and Hoku Gem? I am thinking about plants that people regularly encounter in a Trader Joe's or Lowe's and Home Depot.
Another possibility is one dealing with Dendrobiums and Oncidiums. I know that we have enough talented growers here that could contribute mightily to these stickies.
How about one on Cymbidiums?

I think it would be so cool if we could direct growers new to threads specifically dealing with what they are growing!

I think that's defeating the purpose of this forum. We already have links to the Orchid Society culture pages, and many that come here don't know what they have. Then what to do with all those crosses?