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Apr 1, 2019 10:35 AM CST
Thread OP
Name: Gina
Florida (Zone 9a)
Tropical plant collector 40 years
Aroids Region: Florida Tropicals
I tried them years ago in the greenhouse (fatal mistake they all succumbed to the heat).
I am in the planning stages for my big paludarium. Hopefully I am getting the big 75 gallon extra wide tank from my daughter this weekend. I am doing a smaller scale one first to get the feel of it. But in the bigger one I want to try some new orchids. I was thinking Draculas and Masdevallias. Things I cannot grow in the greenhouse here. SO educate me.
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Apr 1, 2019 11:26 AM CST
Name: Big Bill
Livonia Michigan (Zone 6a)
If you need to relax, grow plants!!
Bee Lover Lover of wildlife (Raccoon badge) Orchids Region: Michigan Hostas Growing under artificial light
Echinacea Critters Allowed Cat Lover Butterflies Birds Region: United States of America
The most I can tell you that there are a couple of species that tolerate warm conditions. Naturally some hybrids involving those species do as well.
But that's not to say you can grow them outside in central Florida.
What do I mean by warm? 85 degrees maximum, but they will like the upper 70's more. Humdity up around 60-80% for most of the year.
Most Draculas need to be grown in baskets or net pots since the spikes grow downward. Pots would abort the spikes.
Most like 55 to 60 degrees at night and 68-72 for daytime highs.
There are quite a few that prefer 50-55 at night and cooler days of 62-67 degrees. They all like humidity, a bit bright, maybe an hour or so of morning sun. Good air movement is a must.
Most grow the best in sphagnum to meet their water loving nature.
Orchid lecturer, teacher and judge. Retired Wildlife Biologist. Supervisor of a nature preserve up until I retired.
Last edited by BigBill Apr 1, 2019 11:27 AM Icon for preview
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Apr 1, 2019 11:32 AM CST
Moderator
Name: Ursula
Fair Lawn NJ, zone 7a
Orchids Plumerias Cactus and Succulents Region: New Jersey Region: Pennsylvania Native Plants and Wildflowers
Greenhouse Ponds Keeper of Koi Forum moderator Lover of wildlife (Black bear badge) Adeniums
I tried one Dracula some years ago, I forgot which species, but it was supposed to be warmth - tolerant. Not! The first Summer outside in NJ killed it quickly.
Now in those years J&L in Connecticut were the "Dracula Queens" around here, they grew them beautifully. They also had a fancy cooling system installed in one of their greenhouses, the word Swamp cooler was mentioned, or was the floor actually cooled in that spot of that greenhouse, I am not sure. But they adjusted their growing environment to cool growing species and they did very well.
Now, if you are growing in a large aquarium - years ago at work, I grew protein crystals in a cold environment. Working for hours in a freezing cold room was really rough, so I had a cold box built, a fancy glove box with a built in microscope. Cooling was achieved not only by circulating antifreeze through the Aluminum bottom plate, but also a small refrigeration unit hung into the glove box. I have no idea where to buy that ca 6 x 8 inch cooling unit, but it worked like a charm together with a small computer fan to cool that box properly down. I think if I were to look into growing cool-growing species, I would spend some time looking for something like that.
Or see if you can pick up an old refrigerated display unit as local butchers use. Or simply modify an old fridge!
Last edited by Ursula Apr 1, 2019 12:42 PM Icon for preview
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Apr 1, 2019 4:12 PM CST
Moderator
Name: Ursula
Fair Lawn NJ, zone 7a
Orchids Plumerias Cactus and Succulents Region: New Jersey Region: Pennsylvania Native Plants and Wildflowers
Greenhouse Ponds Keeper of Koi Forum moderator Lover of wildlife (Black bear badge) Adeniums
There is this cooling thingie on Amazon
Lemebo Mini Portable Air Conditioner Fan, Small Desktop Fan 3 Degree Changeable Angle Adjustable Compact Super Quiet Personal Table Fan Mini Evaporative Air Circulator Cooler Humidifier(White)
by Lemebo

Price: $29.99
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Apr 1, 2019 5:35 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Gina
Florida (Zone 9a)
Tropical plant collector 40 years
Aroids Region: Florida Tropicals
Well, this is my first attempt at a Paludarium, which is where I would try to grow any of these orchids. I set it up today and populated it with a few things from the greenhouse and two of my little cloud forest Racinaea bromeliads from the temporary terrarium tank. The bottom is an aquarium (I am getting a fish to go in there tomorrow) and the top is a terrarium/vivarium (you can build it either way, and keep amphibians or reptiles....I am not planning on either)

I want to mount a couple small orchids on the driftwood, there look like a couple good spots that would work. I imagine it will be plenty humid enough, but am not certain what temps it will be. I have a small clip on fan I can use and also this room has a ceiling fan. The top is a screen top and light on top is a plant light which is removable, although in this particular window, it probably won't be needed (unless I want to light it up like now in the evening)

For now I have thick live carpet moss that grows on every surface along the edges of my greenhouse pond and stream...I just peeled some up and brought it in and laid it down over moistened cocofiber and aliflor. It regrows like crazy in the GH. I put 2 cuttings of Anthurium scandens, some Rhaphidophora , a few cuttings of a variegated dischidia in back, a stalk of aquatic Parrot Feather (which will have to be just temporary as that stuff takes over...I plan to get some immersed aquatics from Petsmart or the aquarium store to plant in the bottom of the aquarium part), a cutting of Scindapsis, my two Racinaea bromeliads, and a cutting of pilea that was already growing in the greenhouse stream. I may add some other stuff later. This is just a start up to gain some experience before I go for the big guy.

So I'd really like some very small cool orchids to go in here. Maybe Draculas and Masdevallias are not the ones for this particular set up. I could get a few bulbophyllums from the greenhouse. But I'd like to try something new.


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Apr 1, 2019 5:46 PM CST
Moderator
Name: Ursula
Fair Lawn NJ, zone 7a
Orchids Plumerias Cactus and Succulents Region: New Jersey Region: Pennsylvania Native Plants and Wildflowers
Greenhouse Ponds Keeper of Koi Forum moderator Lover of wildlife (Black bear badge) Adeniums
Interesting! It looks very promising.
If I may ask about the fish? Please please not a solitary fish? Pretty please?
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Apr 1, 2019 6:17 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Gina
Florida (Zone 9a)
Tropical plant collector 40 years
Aroids Region: Florida Tropicals
I was thinking some neon tetras
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Apr 1, 2019 6:36 PM CST
Name: Alice
Flat Rock, NC (Zone 7a)
Birds Overwinters Tender Plants Indoors Region: North Carolina Hydrangeas Hummingbirder Dog Lover
Container Gardener Charter ATP Member Garden Photography Butterflies Tropicals Ponds
Neon and cardinals look great in plant tanks. Thumbs up
Minds are like parachutes; they work better when they are open.
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Apr 1, 2019 6:36 PM CST
Moderator
Name: Ursula
Fair Lawn NJ, zone 7a
Orchids Plumerias Cactus and Succulents Region: New Jersey Region: Pennsylvania Native Plants and Wildflowers
Greenhouse Ponds Keeper of Koi Forum moderator Lover of wildlife (Black bear badge) Adeniums
Whew! Smiling
I was worried you might pick one of the lonely male Bettas! I always feel sorry for them.
( which btw can be kept together under certain conditions, providing the proper environment...)
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Apr 1, 2019 6:41 PM CST
Name: Alice
Flat Rock, NC (Zone 7a)
Birds Overwinters Tender Plants Indoors Region: North Carolina Hydrangeas Hummingbirder Dog Lover
Container Gardener Charter ATP Member Garden Photography Butterflies Tropicals Ponds
They are not the most exciting but how about something native to the southeast like the Greenfly orchid, wouldn't that one handle the heat? There are other tiny ones native to the area but I forget their names.
Minds are like parachutes; they work better when they are open.
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Apr 1, 2019 7:50 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Gina
Florida (Zone 9a)
Tropical plant collector 40 years
Aroids Region: Florida Tropicals
I don't know where I would find a Green Fly orchid for sale. I may look on the Terrarium sites and see what they sell as being terrarium-friendly then look for it maybe at Andy's, my favorite species orchid source LOL
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Apr 2, 2019 7:55 AM CST
Thread OP
Name: Gina
Florida (Zone 9a)
Tropical plant collector 40 years
Aroids Region: Florida Tropicals
I decided on a snippet of Bulbophyllum (NOID) 0n some cork bark in the back for now, and a couple defoliated canes of dendrobium making new keikis. Added some Hoya curtsii. I imagine I will be tinkering with this for a bit
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Last edited by Gina1960 Apr 2, 2019 7:55 AM Icon for preview
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Apr 2, 2019 8:02 AM CST
Moderator
Name: Ursula
Fair Lawn NJ, zone 7a
Orchids Plumerias Cactus and Succulents Region: New Jersey Region: Pennsylvania Native Plants and Wildflowers
Greenhouse Ponds Keeper of Koi Forum moderator Lover of wildlife (Black bear badge) Adeniums
I think that makes sense, staying away ( for now?) from cool-growing Orchids! Looks like a nice project!
Last edited by Ursula Apr 2, 2019 8:02 AM Icon for preview
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Apr 2, 2019 8:08 AM CST
Name: Elaine
Sarasota, Fl
The one constant in life is change
Amaryllis Tropicals Multi-Region Gardener Orchids Master Gardener: Florida Irises
Herbs Region: Florida Vegetable Grower Daylilies Birds Cat Lover
If you might know someone with acreage in your area, they can probably find you a piece of a Green Fly orchid pretty easily. A lady in DeLand sent me a piece of bark with a nice one on it some years ago. She had 11 acres and lots of oak trees, and said that the little orchids regularly fell off the oak branches onto the ground where she would pick them up.

I made it last for 3 years or so then came out one day to find it upside-down on the ground. It did seed two years in a row, but I've not seen any babies up there on the oak tree where it was living. They like to co-exist with the Resurrection ferns on the tops of big oak branches.
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Elaine

"Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm." –Winston Churchill
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Apr 2, 2019 8:12 AM CST
Thread OP
Name: Gina
Florida (Zone 9a)
Tropical plant collector 40 years
Aroids Region: Florida Tropicals
Well, I have acreage....5 acres, and we live next-door to neighbors that all have 5-15 acres. But I have never, EVER seem any of these orchids. And I have looked. I see tillandsias all the time, but not these. And we have a ton of oaks of all types, we are a hardwood hammock environment. I will just keep looking!
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Apr 2, 2019 8:44 AM CST
Name: Elaine
Sarasota, Fl
The one constant in life is change
Amaryllis Tropicals Multi-Region Gardener Orchids Master Gardener: Florida Irises
Herbs Region: Florida Vegetable Grower Daylilies Birds Cat Lover
Look carefully when the Resurrection ferns are in their wilted state, Gina. The leaves of these little orchids are a max of about 2 1/2 inches tall so you may only see them sticking up when the little ferns are not hiding them.
Elaine

"Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm." –Winston Churchill
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Apr 2, 2019 11:00 AM CST
Name: Alice
Flat Rock, NC (Zone 7a)
Birds Overwinters Tender Plants Indoors Region: North Carolina Hydrangeas Hummingbirder Dog Lover
Container Gardener Charter ATP Member Garden Photography Butterflies Tropicals Ponds
I was told they are way high up in the oaks. Apparently we had many at my last home but I never saw any.
Minds are like parachutes; they work better when they are open.
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Apr 2, 2019 7:00 PM CST
Name: Melissa
Cleveland, OH (Zone 6a)
I'll be interested to see how the hoya curtisii does in that environment. Mine does not like to be overwatered, or even sprayed with water.
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Apr 2, 2019 7:55 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Gina
Florida (Zone 9a)
Tropical plant collector 40 years
Aroids Region: Florida Tropicals
@MissySue really?? I have grown it mounted and not mounted. I just cut down a ton of it that was growing epiphytically mixed in with my DIschidia Geri on the greenhouse wall a couple months ago. I just spray it with the hose. Google 'Hoya curtisii mounted' and you can see lots examples of beautiful mounted curtisii.
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Apr 3, 2019 7:59 AM CST
Name: Melissa
Cleveland, OH (Zone 6a)
Interesting! Up north, they are super picky and develop root rot easily if you overwater, or can develop black spots of fungus. And it doesn't grow quite so fast here either. Well, it's back to the same old story, if you grown them in their natural environment, ok, but when you try to replicate that somewhere else indoors, good luck!

Yes, please keep us posted, or on the Hoya string.

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