Angreacum dideri question

[tolumnia]

So I bought this thing 2 weeks ago "in spike". When I bought it it was potted in a tiny pot with bark. I have been watching anxiously for the spikes to change. Partly because I'm excited to see them but honestly it's mostly so I can hurry up and mount it. The roots down in the pot are looking rather sad and I'm starting to worry. I changed out part of the bark yesterday because the old stuff was holding water WAY too long but couldn't do much without disturbing the roots. (I know they dislike messing with the roots)

Here's the questions:
Is this plant really such a slow flowerer that I couldn't see ANY difference in 2 weeks? Trust me, I've been looking hard!
Since the roots look rough should I forget the flowers an toss the plant on a mount right now?
Does any one else grow them personally who would be willing to share your culture with me? The info on the web is very conflicting.
And, if anyone knows, does this plant grow upright or hanging (like a phal) in nature?

Thank you!!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

They're slow growing.

They grow upright.

Flowers are not important to an ailing plant right now. It might be in your best interest to remove them if they're in flower.

They grow like Vandas.

[tolumnia]

Thank you! It's not in bloom yet, I'm a bit afraid to try to remove the buds as they are so close to the plant. I will go ahead and pick out a really good, long lasting mount in the next few days and tend the plant carefully. I thought this is what I should do, it's nice to have that confirmed.
Any chance that with lots of TLC I can get blooms next cycle or will it pout and make me wait 2-3 years?

[Connie Star]

I've had one for a year that I mounted. I think that was a mistake because my growing conditions are difficult for a mount. I am waiting for the spring re-potting season to "dismount" it.

[BobInBonita]

What kind of light and temperature are you giving it? How often do you water?

Waiting for a spike to grow and mature can be very tedious. Vandas need A LOT of light to grow and flower.

When you say the roots look "sad" what do you mean? If they a very dark and mushy they are rotten - I would cut the spike and try to save the plant. If they are grey/tan and hard they may be VERY dry or they may have died. Soak the plant in a weak solution of Superthrive or KLN and watch the roots. If they plump up they're alive. If they are white and turn green quickly when you water them, they are healthy.


Vandas have a visible root tip where they are actively growing. The longer the tip the faster it is growing, the shorter the tip the slower it is growing. If you've had cool temps and low light the plant may be at a very slow growth rate, and it might not be the best time to mount. I have a couple of Vandas with small spikes forming, and because they are just coming out of the slow winter period here, they are growing very slowly.

If you can send a picture, it might help pinpoint what's going on.

Best of luck

[tolumnia]

Thanks Bob! Right now it is not getting as much light as I would like, it's right next to the catts. turned to catch as much light as it can. I have a space saved for it next to the rosey colored tolumnias. But I can't put it there in it's pot, it will need to be on a hanging mount. I know that the reduced light slows'em down but my goodness, no change in 2 weeks seems excessive since the catts have grown significantly in the same time and were in much rougher shape. I have no idea how it was grown before 2 weeks ago.

It is hard to see the roots at the bottom of the pot without disturbing them. But I will try to get a picture sometime this weekend.
The roots out of the pot are exactly what I would expect on this plant. White (when dry), fat, and bumpy. No noticeable growth tips.
The roots in the pot are anything but dry. About half are going to have to be cut off just from what I saw replacing part of the medium. They look a little better after 3 days, but there is obviously a lot of dead in there. Luckily there still seems to be a lot of live root as well. I would be impossible to tell if it had growth tips without unpotting and looking really closely as the entire root is green below the medium at all times. And if I'm going to stress it enough to unpot it I'm not putting it back in that death-trap pot.

Thank you so much for your feedback. I have an obsession with Angraecum sesquipedale but not the space, this was my compromise and I paid a little more than I should have for it. I'd be heartbroken if it died on me. I will post pics just as soon as I can get them.

[gnathaniel]

Just one thing to add: Ang. didieri actually grows well with fairly low light. It looks like a Vanda but it's not, and many of the Angraecoids like lower light conditions. When I grew this I found it easier to maintain when I lowered the light as that made the mount dry more slowly. Hope this helps!

--Nat

[calvin_orchidL]

I've seen Ang. didieri both mounted and potted, although personally I find it enjoys being mounted. If you have good conditions (high humidity) for mounted plants, definitely go for it. Of the angraecoids I grow, this one really does have roots that LOVE adhering to stuff. Also, mounting it lets the spur hang free...whereas in a pot, I find that it just ends up getting mashed up against the media and it doesn't look nice at all. Check it out:



Dideri buds start off as green pointy nobs appearing between leaves, and these can sit there for months, although once you're plant is acclimatized and growing, it's typically about one-two months before popping open. Once it pops, the bud grows really quickly and will unfurl it's spur within 2 weeks. See below:



The green pointed nub can abort if conditions aren't right, or if your plant is simply not old enough to bloom. Once the bud appears, bud blast may occur with low humidity or cool conditions, but generally speaking you'll likely get a blooming once you get to that stage.

I wouldn't hold my breath for those green nubs...when I got mine as a young plant years ago, it made those green nobs without actually blooming. How many leaves does yours have? If the roots are in danger, I would just do what you need to do and worry about blooms later.

Hope that helps! Excellent plant choice by the way...one of my favorites and it smells absolutely divine.

[ELORCHID]

I grow my Angraecum didieri in a fine bark mix, on a west facing window with my Phals, it dries fairly quickly so I water it every 4 days. I think my plant likes this because it has grown 3 leaves in the past year. Hope this helps.

[tolumnia]

Wow Thanks for all the info!!
Those who grow them in lower light, do they flower for you under those conditions?

This plant had 10 mature leaves and one new one. The new leaf is growing nicely, just nothing else.

I picked up a few options for mounting this one but before I pick the winner, what is the growth habit of this baby? I know each plant grows upright and only gets a few inches tall. But beyond that, does this one grow new plants from anywhere? What happens after it reaches it's "maximum height"? Does it die off at the bottom and keep growing up? Or does it do something funky? I don't want to put it on a mount only to find in a year that I did it wrong.

I did get pictures finally. They aren't very good. But the roots are actually looking a lot better since I changed the medium.