My Caularthron bicornutum opens two good spikes these days, this one is a sturdy plant mounted on a good size branch. It seems the growths are still increasing in size compared to the last 2 years.


Lc Fire Dance 'Patricia' is still not fully open.


And since we are talking Springtime here, this little visitor a few days ago was much respected....


and Renanthera monachica continues to open

I'll bet your little visitor WAS respected! When I was in my teens, we had a mama and two babies living 8' from our front door. Luckily they are nocturnal, and we never had a problem with them.
I had a fun day at Andy's first ever open house today! It was cool, and I had lots of time to talk orchids with both Andy and Katrin. No pictures...it would have been impossible, and alot of the blooms were at the San Diego show.

We don't have pole cats down in these parts and I can't say I miss them. At least armadillo road kill doesn't stink.

Love the Caularthron bicornutum. I wonder if I could grow them.

Jim

Ursula, I have not seen many of your orchids, but have heard many good things. And now I can understand why! WOW! Where do you live now that the orchids have taken over. Lc Fire Dance 'Patricia' is going on my wish list. Outstanding photography as well. Great detail.

Carol, I was thinking about you yesterday when I read Andy's e-mail. Wondered if you were going. Lynda and I are thinking of doing the trip Sunday

Have a great weekend everyone.

Thanks so much Ted! And yes, I am trying to be very organized with my plants, so we still have room in the house for other stuff . They easily can take over.

Andy had sent me the invite too, lucky you Carol!! Must have been fun. Btw we discovered years ago, that Katrin and I speak the same German dialect. Growing up we used to go skiing in her area.

Jim, I got the Caularthron bicornutum a few years ago from Andy and it does well for me. It adds new growth over the Summer ( nicely fertilized) and I water it year around. It hangs in bright light, so your OC should be a great match.

Ted, The open house was interesting, but this may be the one and only, depending on how things go tomorrow. I didn't go to the SD show. Been there etc. Not impressive. Because of the short notice and it being Fri. the openhouse was pretty quiet, but on Sat...? Yahoo maps gave me good directions, but parking will be tough, and without a guide I would have missed a couple of the greenhouses. It's a labarinthe. Not really set up for visitors, but I enjoyed it. No handbags or camera cases allowed due to crowded conditions in the greenhouses. Leaving here at 9:20, it took me 65 min. door to door. Alot longer comming home because I had to stop at Plant Depot in Capo. on the way home.
Ursula, Katrina's mother still lives in Germany. We discussed climate a bit. I always like to deal with her because she and I have the same climate conditions, and she will tell me ( honestly) what to avoid, and what will work for me, but at the shows, they just don't have the time to spend with individual customers. They are local, and I attend all the local shows, but I'm NOT a big spender, so they know my face, but can't waste show time to BS. It is a business. That's one of the reasons I go to the Fri. shows...they aren't quite as busy, especially early in the day. I have to say Andy's greenhouses look alot like the video on his site, not at all like some of those factory growers we;'ve seen videos of.

I think going to Andy's would be fun, Carol, but like you said, I'm sure all the bloomers, etc are at the show in San Diego. I have been to Green Thumb in Lake Forest. Didn't know they had one in Capo

I find shopping at the shows discouraging. Everything is so expensive, and as you say, Carol, the growers don't have time to chat. It's so much cheaper to buy orchids not in bloom, but you have to do some homework and know what to look for on the tags. I take a list, and even if I can't get exactly what's on the list, sometimes I find stuff with similar parentage and for a bargain price will take a chance on it. I'm adding to a long list for our upcoming trip to the orchid capital of Florida.

We'll be showing pics (hopefully I'll remember) of a real factory greenhouse when we visit Apopka next month. First Orchids are huge importers and have massive greenhouses filled with rows of vandas and catts that they sell for $5 to $8 each (last time I went). If you look hard, they have some other types, and I got my nice "opal' Spathoglottis there for $4 as well.

It's that doing your homework part, Elaine. What I have started doing is making my wishlist the name and a picture. Helps a little. But then I go to a show and see all those blooms and POOF, my hands a re full!!

Ted, I edited the post to say Plant Depot. I often hit Green Thumb, but that's a lot closer.
I made a list yesterday so I can do some research before the Spring Garden Show in April, and maybe pre-order.

Homework, research, hmmm! You guys are terrific.
I sort of have a mental list of stuff I fell in love with because of someone's gorgeous post. Then I do the same as Ted, the (mental) list goes out the window as soon as I hit the vendors.
I actually love to buy at shows, best always to make it the very first day of a show, as early as possible. Open houses are always great too for me and then there is the Silva Orchid Fest here in June - only vendors, no show. I love it!!

I'm a homework guy with a list. I buy less that way and I have so many that buying less is a good thing. I gave my fruit presentation at the big plant sale called Greenfest this morning. It is held every year at the University of Tampa and the turnout was huge. My yard is about full and all I look for are rare plants so I didn't buy a thing.

Out in the OC things are blooming. Smbdc. (Schomburgkia X Cattleya) Star of Rio 'Rose'. is looking good.


This is Wilsonara Pacific Lush 'Pretty in Pink'. Lots of buds still to open on this one.


Brassavola Jimminey Cricket opened a single bloom yesterday. If I remember correctly, it will turn pink at it matures but it sure is green now.


Brassavola Memoria Bernice Foster has three buds on it and the first one opened yesterday.


Out under the live oak, Phaius microburst 'Wild Thing' finally opened the first of its buds. Seems like it took a couple of months.


Jim

Jim, very pretty! I love the Brassavola! Nice Phaius too!

You know, growing orchids would be so much easier if it weren't for that totally annoying Boisduval scale. Plants look perfectly clean and fine when inspected during regular watering. But - it is blooming, so you take it off the shelf, from its place and you discover the dreaded white scale on the plant parts which were oriented towards the window. Especially at this time of year, since any remnant of the applied systemic is fully gone by now. Grrr.

rant over

I lost my huge, four-month blooming Phal. I just completed my first-ever Garden Expo (a vendor), and the Phal. was the "centerpiece" for my plant display. I really didn't want to sell it, so I put a rediculous price on it, just knowing it would return safely home when I finished the show on Saturday. A sweet lady that had bought several "baby" orchids and a couple of staghorns earlier, came by and looked at the Phal. She finally said, "I would love to have this orchid, but I just know my husband would kill me, spending that much on a plant". She walked away, heading to the exhibit hall exit. By then I was busy helping another customer, and my wife came over to me and told me "That lady who just left is now standing at the exit, with her hand under her chin. I could tell she was clearly in deep-thought. She is now headed back our way". Well, since I was with the other customer who wanted to know how to mount and grow staghorn ferns, I just keep on talking, with my back still to the Phal. After a few minutes (I sold another stag!), I turned around and the Phal. was gone!. My wife told me that she laid the money on the table and walked straight out of the exhibit hall, not saying a word. Gosh, I already miss that big ole orchid, which was given to me by one of my patients five years ago, telling me that the plant was dead and since she knew I grew orchids, perhaps I could "save" it.

If you have never been a vendor at one of these shows, and this was a two-day one, I can tell you that it is back-breaking work. It took me five hours to set up the day before the Expo started, was at the Expo thirteen hours the first day (on my feet for nine), another ten hours the final day, and then had to spend two hours breaking down and loading up what I had. Since this was my first time to do something like this, I now know a lot more of what to take, how to set-up my exhibit (I had over 100 plants) plus supplies, and what people seem to be more interested in. That being said, I don't know if I will ever do another one. I am getting too old for that kind of physical stress and long hours. Ken

My "lost" NOID Phalaenopsis. She had 40 blooms and her leaf-span was 30".

Maybe it is the challenges that drive us onward and upward. Actually, I hate giving credit to scale...

Jim

It looks like a nice clean plant, Ken. I just hope she doesn't do anything to kill it.

Jim

Yes, Jim. And yes again to those challenges we could do without.

Ken, you probably made the lady very happy, she really was smitten with that beauty and she will surely take good care of it. That is something nice to hold on to?
Surely you will grow another Phal to that size again and then you place a big "not for sale" tag into the pot at the next show. Most vendors have a show plant like that on their tables ( to show what those babies in front of it will look like one of these days) and it is understood that they will not sell it to you, at least most of time. I guess, live and learn....

I'm still crying over the beautiful Lycaste I saw at the last show I was at. The vendor just would not sell it and there were no other lycastes at the show/sale. Those orchids are hard to find down here.

Jim