We had a record month filled with beautiful blooms and interesting discussions. Here is the end of the January thread

The thread "Our Orchid blooms in January 2015" in Orchids forum

It is February 1. and it is cold here in the North East! But, happily it is time for another thread filled with lovely Orchids! Please post away and have a good time.
I will start with my Laelia anceps which opened just this week. 5 spikes this year. The buds are very sticky and I water them plenty to make sure they can open properly.

Beautiful, anceps, Ursula. I have this plant and will have to check and see if any inflorescences are present.

Ok...now I'm in the right month !

Have a few to show. After doing the limbo to get past the Hoya's and big hanging Anthurium's. I sure will be glad when spring get's here and I can get the plants out of the greenhouse !



Rhynchostylis gigantea peach, you know it's in there as soon as you open the door without even seeing it ! Blooms are a little lighter color this time tho



Caulocattleya Sybil

Mj, they are lovely! I am partial to the Rhyncholaelia glauca.

And thanks Ken!

I have two Rhy. gigantea species coming in this month. They will be my first Rhynchostylis plants.

Ursula and MJ they are all gorgeous

Ursula I really like the Rhyncholaelia glauca also. ( I still call them Brassavola's tho, easier to pronounce )

I'm with you, M.J. My two favorite Genera are Schomburgkia and Brassavola and the name boffins destroyed them both.

The painters are finished so I will be out in the OC to relocate and assemble. It is a good chance to disinfect and look over each plant with care. It will probably take a couple of days. The weather is perfect so it should be enjoyable.

Jim

Ursula, Your L. anceps is outstanding! Is there a basket under there, or a mount?

mj, those are all beautiful! I especially like 'Sybil'

Jim, sounds good!

Carol, this plant came about 14 years ago mounted to a sturdy piece of wood. Think one of Andy's mounted plants. That wood disintegrated many years ago and I simply had anchored the plant around a hanger. It has now grown around that and it essentially bare root.
Here is the plant in 2001

While I am waiting for my Dendrochilum glumaceum to open some more, this Dendrochilum yuccaefolium shows some spikes.
We shoveled ca 8 inches of snow and later on some graupel, but things seemed to be done now. This time we cleaned the snow off the cage too, remembering how it collapsed last Winter.

That Dendrochilum glumaceum is really a looker, Ursula. I love it.

Jim

This one is yuccaefolium!
I got this one also as a free plant from the very generous Jim Rose from Cal-Orchids.

Whatever it is, it is beautiful!

We had a front come through with a little rain this morning and now it is sunny but getting cooler by the minute. I closed the OC windows just in case. Out under a live oak lives Cym. Leodogran 'Cradlemont' (Cym. Sweetheart x Cym. Liliana). It was a gift from Laurel a few years ago. The first of dozens of flowers are starting to open. Last year I won a blue ribbon with her and if I can lift her up into the truck, I may show her this year too. That pot must weigh a hundred pounds.


Jim

I would call that awesome!!
I remember when you got that plant!

Carol I thought Sybil would be up your alley.

Ursula, interesting to see your Laelia anceps on it's original mount. I've worried about mounting on wood where the bark was still on and usually try to peel it away. I guess I don't really need to worry about it too much then.

D. yuccaefolium is cool, kinda looks like a cat's tail !

Mj, I find most of Andy's mounts break down after 5 years or so. I don't know what kind of wood/tree he is using, but it is usually not a big deal when it falls apart. Many times one can simply secure a larger plant by wrapping a chain around it and hanging it up, or using a basket hanger with some wire or chain.
I have moved a few smaller Catts to Mopani wood, an African hardwood used in Aquariums and Terrariums. We shall see how long that holds up.
Thought I share a final picture of the Caulocattleya Judy Congdon.

a couple of blooms on a small Den kingianum, incredible how those two silly blooms can put out such a beautiful scent!

And I just had to show again the Epi longipetalum x Laelia lundii, right now blooming from two growths.

Beautiful flowers on the Den kingianum, Ursula, and the fragrance is a bonus. Unusual but nice form on the longipetalum cross. So many orchids, so little space.

I'm thinking we should get a note from Elaine soon about the new grandchild.

I'm at the Extension Service working the MG desk. It was cold last night, low to mid 40s, so I expect some distress calls this morning. I brought along the big white Dendrobium and will drop it off at the state fairgrounds this afternoon for the Tampa Orchid Club display booth. I hesitate to do that because it will be in a building for two weeks and my chids take a beating in the process.

Jim

There are numerous woods that simply won't rot, particularly when they dry out between watering/misting. Cypress, cedar, oak/hickory/walnut, heart-pine, and cork to name a few. Heck, I have cypress that has been under water for decades and didn't rot. Cypress has long been used in ship-building (hulls as well as top-structure). The older heart-pine is, the harder it gets. There are many thousands of 100 year old homes built in the south where heart-pine was used as the 2x4 and 2x6 framing. Forget about hammering a nail into that wood! You have to drill a pilot hole to drive a nail into it, and the drill bit better be tungsten. It is like drilling into steel.

Love that Epi. cross!