my ailing cymbidium

[Shadeflower]

So the new year is approaching and I am looking forward to buying my first pleiones in 2022!
You rarely see pleiones and I think a big part of that is that they only get sold at one time a year so fingers crossed in a weeks time the ones I have on my wishlist are available and I get myself a pleione forrestii. Yes yes apparently the hardest of the lot but I'll get some easier ones too.

But that is not what this post is about, this post is about my latest cymbidium "seedling" I got .... can't even remember exactly, lets say I've had it one year.

So I know it's quite small and through trial and error I have discovered some can handle the same conditions the care guides state but unfortunately through too much error I have also discovered some seedlings can't.

So this seedling went into winter, temps got cold. It got attacked by thrips and bam the latest growth rotted away. I was gutted. You can see the old attempted growth in the background. Lesson learnt I moved it to my australian growing dendrobiums where it doesn't get as cold and a couple months later the next growth developed but it came out rather black looking and is growing very very slowly. It should be ok now fingers crossed but still looks brown. I don't think it would have survived losing another growth and it's not out of the woods yet so I'm encouraging it to make a new years resolution to grow strong.

[Ray]

SF, that looks fine. The vast majority of the cymbs I have grown in the past had very dark emergent growths.

I don’t know what potting medium that’s in, but (again) in my experience, they need a good deal of water and seem to do better if there is little, to no drying.

[Fairorchids]

I grow Cymbidiums almost exclusively(2) in a terrestrial(1) mix, and I water enough that they NEVER go dry.

(1) Chunky peat, composted cow manure, bark & perlite in 4:3:1:1 ratio.
Now that we can't get the chunky peat in the US, I have replaced that component with cedar mulch. Since that mix drains must faster, I have been forced to increase watering considerably.

(2) The epiphytic Cym. aloifolium is the only exception. I grow those in spaghnum/bark mix, 4:1 ratio.

As Ray wrote, not sure what mix you are using, but I would never use a granular mix (you can't water them enough in something like that).

[WaterWitchin]

I'd third that suggestion of needing a more water retentive medium. Cymbs can also handle more fertilizer than many. I use a time released fertilizer on mine, along with regular regime.

[rbarata]

Most new growths are brown/dark purple, especially when the flowers are dark coloured.

[Roberta]

Cym looks good to me too. It's a candidate for a bigger pot. My Cyms are sopping wet (having been rained upon) and cold. So not fragile.

[Shadeflower]

I will just have to update this thread in a year when I get the next one to come out looking like a cucumber.

I've ended up losing one orchid this winter and yes I am partly blaming the Rainmix. Like you say cymbidiums are tough and can handle the cold but not if something is wrong. I just cannot ignore the explosion of growth all over since making that conclusion but this one had already lost a pseudobulb.

I will just carry on posting pictures as I go along.

My warm growing phals are doing so well by now..