I applaud this article. Very well done...but out of date.. Since the boffins discovered DNA, we are all confused about names.

I'd hardly say it's out of date. It's a recent article and the author is going to address names in the next one. Granted, much confusion has resulted from the rampant reclassification in recent years, but I would expect that this will settle down eventually.

It would be nice if this series could be pinned to the top of the Orchid Forum page..I think it would be helpful for many, new to orchids growers.

sugarcane said:It would be nice if this series could be pinned to the top of the Orchid Forum page..I think it would be helpful for many, new to orchids growers.

I added it, thanks for the suggestion!

I'm looking forward to seeing the next articles in the series. Steve is a great author and his book has sold a lot of copies. I'm delighted that he has decided to contribute this great series of articles to the website!

Orchid names are definitely in a state of flux, but the principles of growing them are pretty timeless.

I added the link to this nice article as a sticky to the Orchid forum.

Glad to see this series of articles here. But I kind of disagree about Phals being "foolproof" because it really depends where you are. Phals are very hard for me (and many orchid growing friends here) to grow successfully in Florida.

I liked his statement about "choosing an orchid that's right for your environment" and wish he'd left out the whole statement that Phals are a beginner orchid. Just because they're available everywhere doesn't mean they're easy. The vast majority of those big box and grocery store Phals get thrown out after they finish blooming, from what I've seen.

Either tossed out, or given to a neighbor they think can save them. I can't say how many Phals have been given to me to save...most beyond saving. Even the ones I buy only last a couple of years here.

My sweet husband bought me a Phalaenopsis (looks just like the one in the picture) and it is still growing strong almost a year later! It had even rebloomed. The significance of that is I grow vegetables, not indoor flowers so it has to be foolproof to survive my total neglect

Congrats, Toni. I have killed many over the years.

@plantmanager

Thank you
I was so shocked when this little plant not only kept living, but put on new leaves AND a new flower!
Time will tell.
I can't wait for part 2 of the article

How funny! When I saw the picture of the Phal in this article I did a double take because I thought it was my plant and my picture. I looked back through my photos and YES, it is my photo! How honored I am

Toni, are you talking about the picture on the title page of the article? Was that actually part of the article or did Dave select your nice picture to highlight the article?

Yes! The picture on the title page. Either way I'm thrilled he chose my picture! That doesn't happen all that often

It was an interesting article. I am drawn to them and thinking about getting some to start with, this was a basic but good introduction.