Two Paph questions

[The Mutant]

First question:

So, I drove a wooden skewer through the middle of the pot of my Paph, yesterday, took it out today to check since I thought the medium looked rather dry and the pot felt kind of light. The skewer was almost dry, but I don't know whether to water or not, it has only been four days since I watered my Paph the last time.

I know the skewer probably dries out faster than the surrounding medium, but my non-existent Paph instincts tell me to water it. Should I or shouldn't I?


Second question:

I've noticed that the spike has started to, sort of, curl in upon itself, so as it now has more of an "S" shape as compared to before. Is this good or bad? It looks like the bud has started to grow a bit more too, which I suppose is a good sign, but I'm a bit uncertain about the curling part.

There's no one who can tell what an utter newbie I am when it comes to Paphs, right?


Here are two pics of said spike/bud in question where the first one was taken three days ago, and the second one was taken today:

[billc]

4 days between watering sounds about right. If the skewer is dry, water!
The spike looks fine.

Bill

[The Mutant]

Thanks for your reply! Okay, then I'll do that.

[RJSquirrel]

water it if its dry. it wont mind. before that flower opens up and starts to weep, you might stake the spike up some. wait till the ovary has hardened up and then stake the spike. the ovary is in between the flower and the spike by the way. It if gets pollinated that turns into the seed pod. wait till it gets hardened some before you stake it. if you dont wait, the flower will point towards the ground. you want the flower held up high. staking the spike at the right time is part of paph culture

[The Mutant]

Originally Posted by RJSquirrel

water it if its dry. it wont mind. before that flower opens up and starts to weep, you might stake the spike up some. wait till the ovary has hardened up and then stake the spike. the ovary is in between the flower and the spike by the way. It if gets pollinated that turns into the seed pod. wait till it gets hardened some before you stake it. if you dont wait, the flower will point towards the ground. you want the flower held up high. staking the spike at the right time is part of paph culture

Hopefully it won't since I just realized I can't count - it has been three days since it got watered, but oh well, I've watered it now. let's hope it wasn't too soon. The skewer wasn't completely dry, but almost.

Oh, wait, what? I have to stake the bud? I'm going to kill iiiit!

Oops, I meant stake the spike and nothing else...

[quiltergal]

It's probably dry now because it was 10 days between waterings last time. It was thirsty!

I would recommend staking also, though I usually wait until the flowers start to open. I place the clip below the ovary so it doesn't damage it.

[The Mutant]

It was "only" nine days between the previous two waterings. But it probably was thirsty, yeah.

Ah, thanks, I'll do that too since I'm so afraid of damaging the flower.

[PaphMadMan]

First rule of orchid growing: Worry less, enjoy more.

If you're using a skewer to check the moisture, trust it. I would expect a Paph in active growth and well drained medium to need to be watered about twice a week, but always put the proof of the skewer ahead of any set schedule.

For Paphs, the way to acheive rule #1 is to repot... often. At least once a year, twice a year on schedule is not too often. And always repot NOW if there is ever any questions about root health or the condition of the medium, even if it has a spike.

Your spike does look perfectly normal and healthy. Always keep the plant with the same side toward the light as a spike grows if you want straight strong spikes, and wait until the flower is open to stake it. Otherwise the spike will just twist and turn to try to get the bud facing down again.

[The Mutant]

Hehe, I wish I could go for the worrying less, enjoying more option, but unfortunately, I always act a bit hysterical until I get the hang of things.

Mine was sent to me bare rooted, so it has been potted very recently. I've also read that they like being re-potted due to the medium usually breaking down faster than with Phals.

I noticed this after a couple of days when I had it turned in a different way, the bud twisted to follow the light. Now I have it facing the window as it wants to as to prevent the bud twisting around searching for the light. The spike and bud has straightened out nicely after I yielded to the Paphs demands.

I will do that, thank you so much for the advice. It still has a fair amount of growing left and I'm going to worry and fuzz over it until the end!

[The Mutant]

I've decided to re-name my Paph to "Curly".


One thing is for certain, I can always count on this guy doing something every day.

Pics taken today: