I love my new little friends....now talk me down!

[Austinerd]

Hello All!
My Oak Hill Gardens seedling order arrived today! Yay! I have (all phals) amboinensis, bastianii, Intermedia, and 2 schillerianas. They are in bark and itty-bitty pots. They are cute! But now what.....they are under my shop-light style fixture with 2 T12 tubes, under which my other phals have been pretty happy. I have them in a mini domed greenhouse with a bit of water for extra humidity....though the ambient humidity in the area is usually between 50 and 70%. Soooo.....they don't appear to need water at the moment, and I think I should let them get adjusted to their new home. But after that, I'm a little freaked out on how to care for them. I know I want to try mounting a couple of them, especially the schilleriana, and maybe try S/H on one. How big do they need to be to be mounted or repotted? Any special care since they are seedlings? I realize it may take a few years for them to bloom if they grow well for me. Any ideas would be most appreciated!
Thanks!
Dan

[cb977]

Don't ya just love getting orchid deliveries from Oak Hill?

I had all twenty from my order repotted, divided, mounted...you get the idea by the second day they were here

They're all looking happy happy...I even see signs of new growths and roots

Let us know what you decide to do

[Austinerd]

Thanks, Susanne! I will be going to the orchid show & sale in San Antonio this weekend, so hope to get some new little pots and a couple of cork mounts...and I am also dying to use my fancy phal mix from repotme.com so I will have a phal party Sunday afternoon hee.

[cb977]

We're doing a show/sale here this weekend too!

Lots of partying going on in growing areas all around the country this weekend

[quiltergal]

Aw! Aren't they cute! Very nice selection. I like species Phals a lot. The schills will look very pretty mounted on a nice piece of cork. I don't know that I would use any of these as a S/H experiment. Buy yourself a cheap grocery store NOID and use it for the guinea pig. The bastianii is divine!

[learning2letgo]

My goodness, Dan! I am rather jealous of your new additions! My partner and I made an agreement that he wouldn't purchase me any more 'chids until I was able to accurately maintain the care for the nine I have now! BUT I WANT MORE!!! LOL...

I have never mail ordered a plant, because I usually buy vendor-direct at various plant shows and sales we attend. Time before last, the two I purchased were from Orchid Daze at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. Various vendors were set up to sell their orchids and the greenhouse there was filled to the brim with orchids in all species and cultivars in full bloom along with a stunning display of local artisan artglass! Way impressive!

I'm going to visit that site you mentioned, repotme.com, and check it out, too. I also keep hearing mention of mounting orchids, but I haven't attempted this feat myself just yet, but I am dying to give it a try.

Let me know how well you do with your venture in mounting the orchids and growing from seedlings. It might encourage me to give it a try myself.