I think that's what's wrong: Pick the answer you like best.

Don't even get me started on Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia written completely by morons.

I won't get you started, Daisy.

It's been raining buckets here today and just finally stopped. Perfect photo light out on the bench at the moment.
These are all reruns..


Psychopsis Kalihii (Alba) starts a new round of blooms on her 3 tall spikes.




Jfk. Apple Blossom 'NN' is starting to grow on me. One spike has 11 buds and the second looks to have 9. It's nicely fragrant and the spikes are quite stout.




Eny. Suncoast Sunflares has been blooming since January and is also fragrant with nice strong stems.




and my current new favorite.. Blc. Lily Marie Almas 'MGR'..great fragrance on this one too!

How very pretty!! I can see why you like the 'MGR'! It sure is very nice!

Beautiful!

You are getting the hang of that black background, Lindsey. One suggestion, on the Psychopsis picture, edit the light to make it a little darker. It will take the blochiness out of the black felt and the brightness of the flower will hold up.

Jim

Thanks guys!
Jim I tried to change exposure and also tried post production editing..

With my iPhone just now and the natural background.. It's perfect... But over all I'm pleased as punch with that black backdrop! I didn't have to move any plants.. Just popped it up on the bench and went crazy!

Oh yes, Lily Marie Almas is a gorgeous color combo. I've also *almost* bought that Suncoast Sunflares at a couple of shows recently, too. Hmmm, Mother's Day is coming up!

My camera adjusts the color/light settings automatically so I just shoot 3 or 4 shots of each flower - see the diff in these? Last shots of my favorite Phaius, they are starting to drop now but still have wonderful colors:



To my dismay, discovered mealybugs making a meal of one of my Phaius Microburst flower spikes! Never seen a bug on them before.

Elaine, I can't say say anything bad about Suncoast Sunflares... You SHOULD have it!!!
My big Nikon has a bracketing setting where it does that automatically.. I just have to read the manual to find where it is.
If I were taking a picture of you standing under a shady tree with full sun just behind you, I know how to set the flash to go off , properly exposing you. But I can't do that with a flower only a few inches away. . . And I would still get the fabric texture in focus in the background.. I'll just keep plugging away at it. I wish I could find my first Phal. Photos that I uploaded to either this site or the one we were on before... Night and day!

I have only one orchid. I have not been successful with them in the past and have lost several before I found ATP website. I hope that this will be the start of something new. I have no clue on identification.

Anole

That's a lovely, healthy Phalaenopsis you've got there, John. You must be doing something right!

Living in Louisiana you've certainly got some good conditions for growing them. Just keep it in the shade of an oak tree with a cool breeze, and maybe give it a spritz of fertilizer once in a while. If you get heavy rains often in the summer, it might like to be under a roof overhang, so as not to get too much water.

In the winter it will be happy indoors, as they don't like the temperatures much below about 55. A lot like people, I guess.

Anole, nice color on your Phal! Looks bright and happy!

Elaine, don't you hate that? Looking at such nice blooms and these Mealies grin at you!! A stream of water should get rid of most of them.

LOVE that color , John...and so many blooms ..NICE!

Jim, I saw your Phalaenopsis Sogo. Very nice orchid! Being interested in small orchids, I wonder if you could give me some information about this orchid, such as when it started blooming, for how long it blooms, and anything special that a beginner should know about special growing conditions or tips for this orchid? Thanks.
Jacques

Thanks for all the compliments on my one Phalaenopsis. I have to bring it in the house during the winter and I have it in a window that faces the east which gets the morning the sun. Last year it had one flower stalk with about 20 flowers that seem to last for months. This year it has 3 flower stalks and about the same number of flowers. I mist the leaves regularly and put it outside during rains. I make sure to drain water from the crown-something I learned on ATP. When is warms up I will put it under the shade of my Live Oak for the summer.

Anole

John, it sure looks like you know what you are doing!!

I am not Jim, but I will tell you what I know about the compact and sub-compact Phalaenopsis orchids.

Though Phal. is a very minor segment of orchid plants I grow, I only grow the compact ones. That is due to two factors: They take up far less space and they are great candidates for mounting. I basically end up mounting all of mine. I like it that they are then presented the way they grow in nature.

Generally speaking, the Phal. I have grown over the years will be winter/spring bloomers. I have one in full bloom now, one with flowers and buds, and several that have stems/buds. As I said, I don't grow a lot of Phal. The nice thing about Phalaenopsis is that they can be in bloom for 2-3 months. The flowers are not only long-lasting, lasting longer in cool conditions, but it may take all the buds a month or even two to open.

The care of Phal. is pretty much the same as with most of my orchids. They like to be watered when their media dries out but can handle less than ideal watering, particularly if the humidity is relatively high. I am in Mississippi, so humidity is always high. My Phal. seem to form inflo. best when they are subjected to a drop in night temperatures into the low-60's to mid-50's. Since my orchids are in greenhouses during the fall and winter months, they get nice, warm daytime temps. and a 20-30F drop at night. I probably fertilize more regularly than the average grower, but do so with 1/4 the recommended rate in the fall and winter and 1/2 the rate in the spring and summer. I might fertilize every third or fourth watering.

Two things to beware of with Phal. At least this has been my experience and what I see lots of folks posting. If you grow your plant(s) in a pot, be sure that the plant is tilted to one side so that any water that gets into the crown will drain away. If water remains in the crown, crown-rot is likely and that can/may cause you to lose your plant. Also, my Phal. seem to attract scale. No other family of orchid seems to be a magnet for pests. Examine your plants regularly for pests, looking at the reverse side of the leaves and the stem for infestation. Good air circulation (I have four fans in each greenhouse) helps reduce pests and helps evaporate water. This single aspect is perhaps the most neglected by orchid (or other tropical plants) growers.

Here are some examples of compact and sub-compact Phal. All are mounted plants:

There you have it! Give this post a star so you will find it again with ease!

I did not know what that star was for, Ursula. I should have been doing this for years. I am always trying to find this or that that I or someone else posted, and seldom can.

Yes, and your starred pages are listed on your profile page. If you like, you can then give it a description, so down the road you will know what it is for.