If all this cool weather continues, we may be seeing them blooming in my bathroom this winter! These plants haven't been too long away from Thailand, I think.

I haven't been here for a little while....again! 4 shows in 4 weekends kept me busy, but it also got me a new batch of orchids....

I got these 2 in trade for a couple of my baskets...can I get any advice on care? I know the paph may not survive long, but I'm determined to try! The grower (from right here in Florida) told me to treat it like a house plant and kept it wet! I've never had a cycopsis (sp??) either, it has no tag....






I think they look good in my little autumn display...

Between my set-up at Rafael's and our society meeting last month, I also got:











And then I got this one at this month's Society meeting as a Christmas present for a friend of mine...her husband's last name is Goldschmidt so I couldn't resist!


It was wonderful to see Jim & Lindsey & Elaine at Rafael's sale and Jim was kind enough to give me an "antelope" dendrobium! I can't wait to see it bloom! THANKS again, Jim! Thanks to Lindsey too for buying one of my baskets...I hope your orchid thrives in it!

What a wonderful haul of loot you got there, Patty! I grow my Psychopsis on the same bench as my Catts but it's a tiny bit shadier in that particular spot. Mine has been in constant bloom for 14 months and has just sent up a 4th spike.
I LOVE the basket you made with the rum punch colored beads .It's gorgeous when the sun hits them in the afternoon making them glow and reminding me that it's time to go harvest ice

Thanks Lindsey! What medium is your psychopsis (thanks for the correct spelling) in? Mine is in sphagnum...I'm thinking maybe I should change it? Mine does have a second spike on it. How long do the flowers usually last? Just yesterday mine fell off. Can I keep it in the house or should it go outside? Grower told me to water it every 3 days, sound right?

Harvest ice!

Hmm, I hate Sphagnum. But Psychopsis are notorious for sulking after repotting/disturbing them. I would probably watch the plant and only remove the Spagnum when necessary. In my hands Sphagnum turns at about 6 months and will kill the roots.
Regarding the advice for watering - why do vendors say something like that!! Your watering frequency depends on your conditions, I would touch the medium to see if it needs water.
Your Dendrobium unicum will have very nicely scented blooms, think fruity floral like Apricots and Peaches!

Patty, you bought some really nice and interesting Orchids. I look forwards to seeing their progress!

Thanks for the advice Ursula!

My Psychopsis has 5 bloom stalks now. The first has been blooming for about 18 months. #2 is about to bloom for the first time and the rest have a way to go.

I have been told that Psychopsis will repeat bloom on the same stalk for 15 years or more.

Mine gets watered everyday in the summer as it sits on a bench in front of my mounted orchids but... Its planted in road base! I've been told not to repot and I haven't.

My Psychopsis came to me in sphagnum over a year ago and I havent done a thing to it, because as Ursula has mentioned,they are notorious for sulking afterwards. I talked to the grower at a show recently, and he suggested Spring time when there is active root growth would be the best time to repot. My flowers last about a month, then drop off and within a week or so the next bud behind opens up. If it doesnt rain..and it hasn't here in a few months , I deep water once a week and maybe mist once or twice. I'm not sure what medium they would do better in...Ursula, ..what do you suggest? Daisy, yours is in a gravel type mix?

I have mine in regular Orchid bark mix, nothing fancy.

My Psychopsis Mariposa Green River is bark and some perlite. Has eight spikes and blooms almost year round. It fell once about 3 years ago (I have had it since 2010). No damage to the plant but broke the pot. Was told at the time that they will sulk and it did for about 10 months. I was also told that it liked a tight fit in the pot like Nobile Dens. So I kept it at the same size. Now doing great

Well, thanks for the advice everyone! I guess I will leave it alone for a while, and water when dry-ish, or once a week, whichever comes first.
How about light? Think it will be okay on my dining room table (amidst the 'fall display') for a while? That window right behind the table faces north...
Biggest problem I think is that I have my ceiling fans running almost constantly...dries everything out a lot faster...that's what worries me about the paph too...does everyone else grow that in sphagnum as well?? And keep it damp all the time??
Thanks!

Mine lives outside in dappled light.

I avoid anything planted in Sphagnum as much as possible. I call that stuff "the Orchid - undertaker's favorite tool"! I simply water daily.

I agree, Ursula. I'd rather water every day than take my chances with the dreaded sphagnum. Besides, didn't Motes tell us that it was all about how fast the orchid dried out?

Jim

Yes!

OK then! Thanks again, everyone!

Arrived home about 9:30 last night after giving a presentation on roses at the library in Plant City. That is quite a drive from Odessa. Anyway, it went well.

I've been out all day today with the orchid club on a field trip to two growers north of here. Goodwin Orchids specializes in Vandas and Hill Top Orchids had quite an assortment including minis. I came home with six new babies as follows:

Vanda Jakkit Gold (Vanda Jiraprapa x Vanda Rasri Gold), Large greenish yellow flower that is very clear. It is in spike.
Vanda Brighton's Ruby Jewel (Vanda Doctor Anek x Vanda Simirun). Huge sparkling red flowers. In spike
Vanda Weerapan. This is a mini-Vanda with brilliant red flowers bur I can't find it registered. Could be a Goodwin special. In spike
Brassocatanthe [Bct.] Simba's Song (C. purpurata x Bsn. Maikai). Large plant full of buds with one open. Picture tomorrow.
Coelogyne [Coel.] pandurata. A nice bare root division. It will have beautiful greenish yellow flowers.
Liparis [Lip.] viridiflora. Nice division of a very large plant.

It was a fun day and the weather was great. I missed Lindsey??

Jim

well...I have one Vanda...that's enough!
Hilltop had plants that might not have been up my alley and the last stop was advertised to be Everlast orchids..the folks that I bought 7 plants from a few months ago..all tagged...and all horribly mis tagged...Catts grown in sphagnum and ridiculously over potted..so I chose to stay home and deal with contractors and renovation excitement. The inspector is going to stop by tomorrow and look at the electrical part of my project...it couldnt get any more exciting!

We didn't stop at Everlast. Goodwin was pure Vandas but they had a ton of them and they were large. It made First Orchids look tiny. The prices there were not great. $30 for $12 sized Vanda at Apopka but mine are all in spike. Hilltop had some unique stuff. The Simba's Song is a beauty and right up your alley.

Jim

I was down near Hilton Head today and picked up a couple of bag babies today at a Lowe's. One is a N. Little Stars, woo hoo, I was surprised to see that one, our local Lowe's never has anything like that. The other, according to the picture, is a floofy pink Catt and when I unpacked it I saw the pb's were completely buried in the bark medium. That's not right is it? Otherwise it seemed quite healthy. I took most of the old bark off and replanted it with the pb's exposed.