Isn't that the truth!

Richard, besides being absolutely vigilant, how do you deal with Mealies at Kew?

mealies and scale are my bane too...especially the mealies. If there is a single one around, it will levitate to Phalaenopsis in particular. Our greenhouse at work is the source so when I move them from work to home, bingo, I have them! I usually give them a good dousing these days before I reintroduce them into the house. Seems to be working pretty good but a few always miss detection.

Yup!
Today I lost my wonderful enlarging Soph. rosea bud to mice! Trap is set!

Wonderful show everyone. I'm with you on fighting the bugs. At least the screen helps keep the mice and grasshoppers away.

The weather folks confirmed this morning that last month was the coldest December on record for the Tampa Bay area. Just lucky I guess.

Jim

Very lucky.... ....

Pics from today:
Paph henryanum
Den rigidum
Slc India Rose Sherwood 'Kiilani'
Eplc. Butterfly Kisses 'Mendenhall' and Oncidia Charlesworthii 'Mishima'

Vanda lilacina x Aerides houlletiana opened today. It also bloomed in September!

Darwinara Fuchs Cream Puff x Ascocentrum miniatum was a light peach to begin but now the miniatum has taken over.

Also just opening is Ctna. Maui Maid x Epc. Morea.

Meanwhile we had the warmest December on record! 40 F was the average (should be 32 F) Still no snow here! The world weather is crazy!

Todd, good for you! I would have been happy!

Kathy, very nice blooms today! Gotta love the Vanda lilacina x Aerides houlletiana, such a pretty little performer!

My P. henryanum is NOT happy...it has not budged in 5 months yet is still green and apparently well-rooted.

I have a rash of Phrags blooming...I lost many to rot in the last few months but the few remaining seem to have finally settled down.

Phragmipedium Michel Tremblay...my avatar!



Phragmipedium Hanne Popow flavum



Phragmipedium Cape Bonanza



Phragmipedium Green Hornet



Phragmipedium Will Chantry

Love Michel Tremblay and Cape Bonanza!!!! :hearts:
My HanneP produced one bloom and stopped. Are they all from Paramount? That's where I got Hanne P.

beautiful todd! Ive just got Helvetia with 4 flowers (see the newest flowers petals haven't twisted yet) and Penny Kuroda 'spots' still...

Happy New Year One and All.

It has been very warm here as well, not a speck of snow for Christmas and sunny and high forties on New Years Day.

Beautiful display of blooms this month already. I going for all the red ones,,,,, Todd's Burrageara Living Fire and Phrag Will Chantry, Ursula's Slc Hazel Boyd 'Debbie' WOW factor and Kathie's Slc India Rose Sherwood 'Kiilani' and Oncidia Charlesworthii 'Mishima'. Here, I am with Jim regarding Paphs and ability to get them to bloom I do have a few that will bloom though but I have many times more that don't, so why do I keep buying them????? I guess for the 1 in !0 that will bloom, so Kathy's Paph henryanum hold a special place in my heart as well.

Todd, regarding your stalled henryanum, try sprinkling cinnamon into the crown and misting it down. I read about this in the book "Tropical Slipper Orchids" by Harold Koopowitz as a method he discovered when treating for disease which also seem to stimulate growth. Cinnamon as a growth stimulator works on phragmipedium, paphiopedilum and phalaenopsis. I have tried it mainly on phalaenopsis and and it does work quite often, unfortunately not always. Quite often you will see a little plug of cinnamon being pushed out of the crown just within a few days other times a couple or 3 weeks and other times,,,,,, just wait for it .

Good luck, I hope it works for everyone who tries this.

Ken, Happy New year to you too!
Cinnamon you say? I will try that!

Tood, you have a really nice show there! I think the Phragmipedium Michel Tremblay is my favorite!
Bree, very pretty! Still no scent on the Penny Kuroda?

Thats a new one on me ken, but I'll try it. I have several stalled paphs at the moment.

Kathy, none of those Phrags came from Paramount. Michel Tremblay and Green Hornet came from a breeder in Quebec. Cape Bonanza came from Cloud's orchids and the other two came from Orchids Limited.

Bree that Helvetia is stunning!

That's interesting. I guess I assumed that all your slippers came flying home with you from Paramount. Well so much for assumptions!

Silly me, picturing flying slippers....

I am amazed how long some of these Paph blooms last, Paph Pedro's Moon 'Perky' opened at the end of November, it is still going strong now!

Pot. Pure Love ‘Scarlet' x Slc. Precious Stones ‘Gold Country' (picked up in Summer 2009) shows a first dark red bloom on a small window-sill Catt.


Dendrobium Mingle's Sapphire has a couple of clusters open


Vanda David Gardner lost a couple of blooms but it is still going strong


Ascda Peddler's Velvet Gold opens a new spike


And the scent of Angraecum sesquipedale is wafting down the stairs in the evening.

Bree love the color and spots of Cattleya Penny Kuroda 'Spots'.

Todd, my Paph henryanum was stalled as well so mid November I gave it the cinnamon treatment and noticed about a week ago that a new leaf had started as the little plug of cinnamon was pushed out so it took about 6 weeks for this one or for all I really know it may have started on its own had I done nothing, either way I am happy.

Ursula, fantastic looking blooms, I am really drawn to Paph Pedro's Moon and of course Pot. Pure Love ‘Scarlet' x Slc. Precious Stones ‘Gold Country' .


Picked up these mini NOID phals at a local nursery in 2" pots, the blooms are almost 1.5 " wide.


and this little NOID which probably is Phal Brother Spring Dancer


Sc Crystelle Smith 'Aileen'


Blc Rustic Spots

Gosh!! Ursula and Ken you've got great shows going. I love this time of year! Pot. Pure Love ‘Scarlet' x Slc. Precious Stones ‘Gold Country' is especially gorgeous! I have a few Phals in bud. Hope they look as good as yours Ken!