Something's missing...oh yeah FLOWERS!

[Paul]

Paphs and neos for foliage plants?! No no no -- go for jewel orchids THOSE are leaves to be admired...

[Phal-gal]

Ohhh, Shakkai! Love those leaves!! Especially the 2nd one, the Paph Venustum! Gorgeous!

[Bird Song Farm]

Originally Posted by Paul

Paphs and neos for foliage plants?! No no no -- go for jewel orchids THOSE are leaves to be admired...

Don't they have to be penned up behind glass?

(I hope you all realize I'm teasing!!!)
AL

[shakkai]

Originally Posted by Phal-gal

Ohhh, Shakkai! Love those leaves!! Especially the 2nd one, the Paph Venustum! Gorgeous!

Thanks! I think it is only because they are so pretty out of bloom that I have the patience to wait for these seedlings to bloom!

(And yes, Al, we know you are just kidding around! Don't worry!! )

[AaronM]

I think you guys are right except for one thing. I don't like Phals, they are way too common. Who wants to have friends over and hear one of them say "Look at those pretty flowers. That's like the one we saw at the grocery store."?
As for Paphs, I've never seen a nice looking one that was in my price range. All the colorful and/or fancy schmansy ones that I've come across were $30 or more (sometimes way more).
Besides, I'm not trying to grow pretty leaves. I want flowers. Preferably a ton of them and this century.
I have a jewel orchid that someone gave me but I know nothing about them. I just stuck it in some potting mix with peat moss mixed in and water it when it's dry like any houseplant.
You know what is really frustrating? I have a couple plants that used to flower before I had any idea how to care for them. Since I mounted/basketed/repotted them, nothing.
Oh and Al. Please tell me that's a picture of a neighbors dog. Come on, what's the point of owning a dog that, instead of killing a burglar, would end up being stuffed in sack and given to his girlfriend along with your DVD player? Don't get me wrong, I love Maltese I just wish they were bigger and could chase down wild boars for my sport. "That's right Mr. Puff Puff, go for the soft underbelly! Kill! Kill! Muahahahaha! Good boy! Now lets go home and Daddy will polish your nails and French braid your fur." (That's a sound bite from my giant Maltese boar hunting fantasy.)
Actually I want my next pet to be a wallaby and want to name it Deathmonger. So who am I to judge?

Thanks anyway for the suggestions all.

Aaron "The Wallaby Wisher" M

[shakkai]

Aaron, I had you pegged for they type that would have pet alligators down there in Florida... A wallaby???

[Bird Song Farm]

Hey Aaron, the dog (Keiki) is small buy mighty! She'll put a German Shepherd in a corner in a second. She won't have the opportunity to take on a wild boar up here in Maine but she'll tell the deer off real quick!!
Great watch dog, super pet, and I don't have to carry a shovel when she does her business!!

As for the phals, do some searching, you'll find hundreds that you won't find in the grocery store and you do insist on blossoms............well??
AL

[kiki-do]

Hi Aaron,
Orchids are challenging plants, some more than others. Everyone mentions needing plenty of patience. Perhaps you should try growing something else if you want instant gratification. I honestly don't know of any orchids or houseplants that are ongoing blooms other than phals, as Al mentioned. Try some phals that aren't common, as Al also mentioned. You generally don't see species in your local grocery stores.
And honestly, I'm a little bothered by the way you attacked Al's dog. The majority of us have pets because they make loving companions...we generally aren't looking for attack animals.
So please, chill out a little.

[David Morris]

Several notes for you.
First. I agree with all to say you have a nack for writing.
Also I think I can say with some confidence that we (all of us who have more than 100 plants, although I have more than 10,000) Have never blooming orchids of one kind or another. My favorite neverblooming orchid is a Vandopsis gigantea which I imported from Thailand 30 years ago,. It was growing one leaf every other year (it also lost a leaf at this same pace) until last year when the crown rotted. It has never bloomed ever. At the Malaysia World orchid conferance I was told they had a catagory in their show titled: All other orchids in bloom or not. In the show itself was a huge Grammatophyllum of the scriptum type that was not only not in bloom but appeared to have never bloomed in it's life. Anyway your Grammatophyllum looks like mine and it will have to do much better in order to bloom. They are very warm growing and very Spidermite sensitive. Your Maxillaria which looks to me like tenuifolia also should be a little larger and fully packed. It however would probably do better outside where you are (South Florida?). Also some tenuifolias are hard to bloom (usually the awardable ones). Mine is easy to bloom and huge, like six feet across not awardable apparently

[AaronM]

Originally Posted by kiki-do

Hi Aaron,
And honestly, I'm a little bothered by the way you attacked Al's dog. The majority of us have pets because they make loving companions...we generally aren't looking for attack animals.
So please, chill out a little.

Sorry to all the toy dog lovers out there. I was only having a little fun at Al's expense. I'm afraid I've gotten a little Southern fried living down here in the land of coon hounds and pit bulls. Seriously, the dog park in my neighborhood looks like a waiting area outside a dog fighting ring (I wish someone would tell these people that some 1200lb test chain and a padlock does not a dog collar make). They should really have a separate park for dogs with less that 800psi jaw strength.

As for the orchids. The point of this thread besides entertaining was to get some info on how to coax flowers out of my existing orchids. After only a couple of weeks I am seeing improvements in many of the orchids I moved outside. Now I just have to sit back and wait.
If I seem impatient (which, I admit, I am), keep in mind that Many of these orchids were rescues. I have never seen the vast majority flower and don't even know what several of them are. I need to see some flowers both to identify the plants and to determine which I want to take cuttings of before my Brother in law reclaims them. It isn't that I want instant gratification, I just want any gratification.
While I derive pleasure from every new active eye and each vigorous new root tip, I would like for myself and my wife to reap some floral benefits for all my efforts and her forbearance.

Again, I apologize if I hurt any feelings out there.

Aaron "The Dog Insulter" M

P.S. Al please put Keiki's picture back up. I'm sure that I'm not the only one who couldn't help but smile at it.