Keeping track of cultural needs

[D_novice]

Unlike many orchidists, I am not blessed with a perfect memory for the exact cultural needs of each of my plants.

I am looking for some kind of system that will help me group my plants according to the major cultural needs. Anyone have a SIMPLE (!) system for this? I was thinking of maybe making colored tags of some kind, though that could be become unwieldy.

Here's the variables:

Cold
Intermediate

Bright Light
Medium Light
Shade

Dry Rest
Consistent Moisture throughout year

---

All of my plants are drier in winter since the days are short, but some get water every 10-14 days while some (Cymbidiums for instance) currently get water once/month.

Anything people have done to categorize their plants across multiple conditions like this, please share what works for you! Thanks

[Ray]

You could easily make a code out of your three criteria and put it on a label: C/B/R = cool, bright, rest

[Leucadian]

I grow outdoors in Southern California, and limit my collection to those that can tolerate my conditions. That means that the temperature is the same for everyone. I vary the light by adding shade cloth or hiding short plants under tall ones. Or growing in full sun, and choose the side of the greenhouse to put them on. (East for cool morning sun, West for hot afternoon, South for max light and heat, and North for least sun.)

So I would recommend that you group your plants by temperature tolerance first, then by light requirements. Watering can be accommodated by further grouping (daily, weekly) and all watering adjusted according to the weather (dry/hot vs rainy/cool). For those plants with a rest period, use a flag system to indicate that.

With my collection, I have areas for Cattleyas, Aussie Dendrobiums, Rupicolous Laelias, Mounted, and Other. Plus a quarantine or hospital section.

[D_novice]

So you grow outdoors, meaning an unheated greenhouse? But, still a greenhouse...

I'm growing in Marin County, outdoors under shade cloth April-October, and combination indoors (for intermedidate plants) and outdoors covered (plastic greenhouse, minimal watering) for cold plants.

I should probably come up with a six way grid and color scheme: Cold/cool + bright / medium / shade; and Intermediate + bright/medium/shade.

I can't just leave my plants in one place, they have to be moved indoors / outdoors, into the dry house, other stuff. Plus there is light filtering from being under trees, foliage, etc etc. So in fact light angles and levels shift from week to week and what was a nice level a month ago burns the leaves before I even notice another time.

Orchid problems!!

[Leucadian]

Greenhouse? Soon, but not yet. I grow in a PVC shadehouse, on 4 benches. Three are for orchids, one for succulents and 'other'. I have about 200 orchids, and all the benches are full, so I really can't move them. I bring them in the house or around the yard when they bloom.

I have draped more shadecloth for the more sensitive plants, and grouped them together.

Then it's watering and bug management. I try to choose media that will accomodate weekly watering, with more frequent attention to mounted plants and small containers. For me, this simplifies maintaining my collection, and I can concentrate on the plants that are new or problematic.

[rbarata]

An "old" thread but there's always room for some input...why don't you go the other way around: instead of classiffying each plant, do it for each location in your house.
When I buy a plant I know in advance where to put it. So, all the plants in that location have the same cultural needs (more or less).

[D_novice]

Hi Leucadian, this is what confused me

Or growing in full sun, and choose the side of the greenhouse to put them on.

I guess you're in Leucadia? I love North County. Went to UCSD in mid-80s and when I go back to Encinitas et al, I wonder why I ever left!

I have ~90 orchids, winnowed down from ~125 a few years ago, and now focussed on Oncidium alliance, but have outdoor Nor Cal hardy L anceps and Cymbidium too.

Would be nice to drive down the road for Andy's plants and not pay shipping

[Roberta]

Even the term "full sun" needs to be qualified, especially with regard to duration. Learned the hard way interpreting Andy's tags... and toasting the plants. That's where the nursery visit helps. "Full Sun" at Andy's orchids, is tempered by lots of trees that cast some shade at some times of the day. In my yard, which faces east/west without trees over most ot if, "full sun" means "blasting 13-14 hours a day" in summer. So even the "full sun" plants get about 40% shade cloth to take the edge off.

[Leucadian]

I just meant that even in my shade house, there are different conditions in the 4 sides, so the east side get full morning sun for 3-4 hours, whereas the south side is always bright.

I would use Andy's plant tag key Andy's Orchids - Species Specialist - Tips and technics to help your growing needs, and then follow rbarata's advice to determine what locations are appropriate for any given plant.

Note that Andy structures his GH with bright light plants at the top, and dim light ones near the ground.

Good luck.

[Roberta]

Definitely group the plants by their major requirements (temperature and light). Then you can adjust potting to control the amount of water each experiences. Mounted or open basket - quick drying even with daily watering. Sphagnum in plastic - stays moist. In between, various bark mixes. But if the medium is chosen with watering needs in mind you only have to think about it every couple of years when you repot, everything in a given area gets the same amount and frequency of water but the effect on the plants varies according to the medium.