We came from here
The thread "Our Orchid blooms in September 2013" in Orchids forum

It is time for a fresh new thread as September came to a close. Hope to see you All!
Let me start with a "mix of stuff" -

A farewell to Habenaria medusa, now on its last blossoms


Octomeria grandiflora is a fairly small plant with cute blooms, unfortunately the leaves on mine have a tendency to get a bit spotted.


Ascda Fuchs Joy starts up again and Ascda Peddler's Velvet Gold is still in bloom


Dendrobium rigidum is a cute miniature, I grow it in full sun year around and it is an easy bloomer.


Caulocattleya Paul Vondersaar is now fully open


and this is the last bloom on Eulophia euglossa, it was flowering for many weeks outside on a long stem. ( I know, not a great plant pic, but.....)


Prra Motes Lepechaun 'Haiku Mint' is in bloom again


And Oncidium Sharry Baby starts up on 3 long spikes, I love the Chocolate/Vanilla scent.

Thanks for the new thread, Ursula. It is nice to see one last glimpse of Habenaria medusa as mine is wilting away to nothing. I hope it makes it through the dormant period. I am impressed with the Eulophia euglossa. I don't have one of those and now you have tempted me. I also like the cute little Dendrobium rigidum. Very nice start to October.

I tossed another Stanhopea today and the few I have left look like lemmings marching off a cliff. I have no idea what is taking them out. The Gongoras, hanging right along beside them are doing fine.

Jim

It was a pleasure! Thank you! And it was nice to see your C. Brabantiae comment in the Sept thread too!

I wonder - Stanhopeas don't mind some cooler temperatures, but then you say the Gongoras look fine.... sometimes we simply didn't pick up a vigorous plant?
I had to split my Stanhopea wardii a couple of years ago, as the spikes simply couldn't push any longer through the plant mass. It is still sulking!!

Nice to hear I'm not the only one having some UI problems with Orchids. Although sad to hear others are having problems. I repotted 2 yesterday after part just died off. Hopefully the pieces I saved will come back. And I had to split my Sharry Baby in Spring & a couple aren't looking too good & the original has just had 1 bloom since.
I'm hoping she will be happier once the leaves fall & she gets more light.

Jean, UI?
I always have some Orchids which are of the non-blooming variety , or get easily black rot, or especially susceptible to whatever insect invasion, but I think that is just part of growing Orchids? On the other hand - most are charmers, grow when they are supposed to and some actually never seem to see a bug ( like Ornithophora radicans, both my Ceratostylis and a few more.) So I would say, if the single non-thriving Orchid gets me down, I simply need more Orchids!!

Ursula, always need more orchids. I'm trying to buy more of the ones that are not as rot-susceptible for sure. Also hoping that the addition of the silicon solution to my watering regime might help them all develop resistance.

I am madly cutting and treating for black rot again after last week's overwhelming rain for 3 days. It was just coming under control, too. I've lost a couple of Phals and my B.Yellow Bird keeps popping up with black blotches. The quarantine area is quite well populated these days.

C'mon, Dry Weather!! Now we have another tropical system that may push more rain at us this weekend. I think I'm going to move or cover everybody to keep them a little dryer if the rain gets serious.

I am puzzled over UI, too Jean??

I hate Black rot!!!!! I am sorry you have to fight that! I can just feel with you!
I had some this Summer, but that was nothing compared to some other years. I had several trees cut down which in previous years had rained fungused leaves all Summer over my Orchid cage. I really believe that removing those trees helped a lot in my case. Drier weather when it was chilly out helped too around here.

Silicon solution? What are we talking about?

I am trying a product known as The Silicon Solution, brand name Pro-Tekt by Dyna-Gro. Jim mentioned that some members of his orchid club were using it, in our thread back in May about SuperThrive. The claims are that it enhances resistance to cold, other environmental stress and fungal attack by strengthening the plants' cell walls.

I did some reading up on it at that time and it sure sounded like something that would help me grow orchids outdoors, so I bought a bottle and have been spraying it once a month in my fert spray since maybe June. As the weather gets cooler and drier, I'm going to put it in the weekly douse, too. Time will tell. My first stab at the silicon research netted an interesting article https://njaes.rutgers.edu/spot... although this study used calcium silicate as a soil amendment, not silicon dioxide (that's in Pro Tekt) as a soluble additive. The most interesting tidbit is that silicon has been accepted as a "plant beneficial substance" and plant available Si can be listed in the "Guaranteed Analysis" on fertilizers since the Rutgers study, I think it was.

I definitely plan to try it out on my veggies this fall, too. It was shown to boost resistance to powdery mildew disease in the study - and boy! do I get powdery mildew around here in the fall!

I hear you about the trees over the orchid area. One of my big oaks tends to reach over my pool cage where the orchids are. I am hoping the thorough cleaning of the cage two weeks ago has eliminated at least a little of the tree 'dirt' that falls. I have pruned the branches back faithfully, but the rainwater I use to water my 'chids comes off the roof where those branches overhang, too. So that may be another source. One more thing I've noticed is where the snails were getting onto some plants, those plants definitely have more black spots, so the goldurned snails must have been spreading it around in their travels. I have not seen another snail on the 'chids since we installed the copper door sills, though.

Interesting, Elaine. Let us know how this goes, please.

Sure will. Given how slowly most orchids grow, and how little of the stuff I'm using, I have to wonder how I will ever tell if it is working.

Maybe by next summer if there is less black rot, that might indicate a result. At any rate, I'm sure it can't hurt.

I use on occasion Dyna Rok II as addition to the medium. I don't know if you can see it here well, but
I mixed some ( well washed) Dyna Rok II with loosened Coconut fiber, to keep the orchids in place.
http://garden.org/thread/view_...

Therei s a little activity on the OC today. This NOID Cattleya has been in my collection for years and blooms every year at this time. The last picture is of a new bloom just opening. Notice the contrast in color with the older blooms.



Psychopsis mariposa 'Green Valley' has a new flower.


Beautiful bloom on this Lc. Warneri - purpurata 'Brazilian' X B. nodosa.


Degarmoara Flying High is just about fully open.


Jim

And a very pretty activity in the OC it is!
I like the delicate pink on the maturing noid Cattleya very much! Flying High is stunning!

I have a lot less rot these days since I started tarping over the wall o orchids. I let them get rained on only in the AM. But of course that means I am having to run home a lot to beat rainstorms in summer. And I realize that probably would be impossible if they were growing in trees in FL.

Sorry - UI = unidentified

Oh I see, Jean! Thanks for the clarification. I know it as noid. But then you were not talking about noid Orchids. Got it.

Beautiful colors on that noid Catt, Jim. I really like the flower shape on Flying High, too. It definitely has 'wings'.

My noid catt is the only thing blooming here, as far as orchids go. But I have several spikes looking promising so hopefully soon. I'm off to Tropiflora's festival this morning, with a firm grip on my wallet! Buying shoes are warming up.

Enjoy the festival, Elaine!

If I had a choice to shop only one nursery for orchids, it would be Plantio La Orquidea. Rafael Romero has a wonderful collection there in Sarasota. So, enjoy your shopping, Elaine.

Jim

I love shopping there, too. They set up a booth with lovely bloomers etc. on the Tropiflora lot, but it's not just 'show' orchids. They sell bare root bargains and some great divisions plus sometimes an older one that needs re-potting so, well you all know how I love a bargain.

Sadly, there was a lineup of cars there when I arrived, and the place was a madhouse this morning. I had an appt. this afternoon and needed to make my shopping quick, so didn't have time to be patient, wait to park and wait in line etc. So I am going back tomorrow afternoon. Luckily it isn't a terribly far drive for me. Weather's great for shopping outdoors, too. Cloudy and breezy the next few days with the storm going by to the west of us.