Epidendrum perperomia

[Kimbubbley]

Hello!

Does anyone have any cultural experience with this little beauty they can share? I've been to ISOPE for info, but personal experience and mounting experience would be good, I'd ideally like to mount it on drift wood however I do have a couple of nice knot holes I could sort of pot it in?

There's also conflicting info on light and temp requirements... warm and bright or cool and shady, so maybe gathering advice here is the way to go!

Mine arrives tomorrow

Thanks in advance

Kim

[WhiteRabbit]

gl!

[Kimbubbley]

Thanks Rabbit!

[Kimbubbley]

So Epi. peperomia finally arrived! Its mounted now in my tank, but instead of feeling elated in slightly deflated Mounting minis is hard and frustrating!!

I managed to break a tip, fortunately not the 2 flowers or the bud, but a new tip just the same lost its end and becasue it was pot grown and i mounted to already established wood it was impossible to make the flowers sit so i can view them... i guess with as it expands and blooms i should hopefully have some blooms that are actually pointing at ME! lol

Anywho... we all like pics so pics attached ill try and get some of my tank as it looks now, but for the moment ive sprayed inside and i cant see for water droplets!

[Paul]

Cute flowers. I know this one by the name Epi. porpax which I understand is a synonym. Mine grows like a weed but I've never succeeded in blooming it.

[Kimbubbley]

Can't take credit for the blooms Paul, lucky they survived my mangled attempt at mounting! shame I knocked the tip off another growth as I might have got another bloom... There is a bud developing tho, so fingers crossed for that one

My leptotes bicolour has some tiny "things" growing, probably roots as they were already in terrible shape when it arrived.

The aerangis punctata has only been settling for a couple of weeks but hasn't done anything that looks like dying yet

Even the moss I transplanted is still in the land of the living after about 3weeks! The peperomia is the only plant with flowers though so I really hope I can make everything bloom after all my hard work!!

How's your tank coming along??

[glengary54]

A couple of things, a few experts are now saying that porpax and perperomia are separate species, perperomia is only found in Columbia and Venezuela.

The confusion you seem to be getting regarding culture is mostly due to the fact that the species grows over a wide range, at altitudes from several hundred feet to several thousand feet. What that says to me is that the species is temperature tolerant. It does require bright light to get it to bloom but never direct sun light.

In it's natural habit, it recieves very littles rain in the winter months but is exposed to evening mists and morning dew. I reduce water in the winter but never let it go to long being dry.

It does equally well potted or mounted, if potted it needs a shalow pot with a very porous medium. It does not like it's roots to be stale or soggy.

As far as you breaking off a growth point, don't worry, it will branch from a dormant eye below the break.

Can't wait to see pictures of your finished set-up.

[Kimbubbley]

Hi Glen

I saw while i was reading that peperomia and porpax were thought of as different species? Also that somebody very nice whos name i cant remember described the two species as having different lip shape? Sorry, i read so many threads i have addled my brain

Thanks for the cultural advice. I need to invest in a mister instead of my HUGE pumped pressure hand spray! At the moment i spray the tank and it drowns... the fan dries it out quick, but morning dew it is definatley not... i will need to find something finer by then end of the month

I was sooo tempted to try mounting by sandwiching the roots to the back drop with another piece of kitchen scourer .... but i just couldnt do it maybe if it will grow madly for me like Paul's does i will risk a piece to try it but for now th moss seems to like the kitchen scourer material and it will be nice to see if it will spread out and cover it... idk

As the weeks tick by slowly, and i keep adding more plants - TRYING to match them to my conditions AND each other, and to figure out if my watering schedule is ok with the plants, i am more and more pleased with such a pleasent passtime and that everything is still healthy!... with no bug hatching, or mould growing, or root rotting, or the thankfully the dreaded "black spot"!!

There is however one big issue ive come across so far..... Im gonna need more room!

[Bud]

Impressive! You also have a blooming healthy plant...good work!

[Kimbubbley]

Thank you Bud it's so nice to see my first bloom in there!... I hope I can keep it looking so healthy and see the tank through it's first winter ok. I will give it my best shot still learning every day.

If everything is ok by spring I will try tinkering around for blooms and hopefully mount some micro minis to my patch free moss wall!