Identification of species and basic care help

[jamesgravley]

Hola all! My name is James and I live in the Tegucigalpa, Honduras. I will briefly describe my interest in orchids (as a sort of intro.) then get to the good stuff.

I worked for a plant merchandising company for a few years. We sold orchids and I fell in love with them from the get go. When we would clearance or mark down the orchids I would take a few (somewhat healthy ones) home. Mainly the general white and pink Phalaenopsis. I had marginal success but my life was not conducive to long term care of ANYTHING, especially orchids.

Fast forward 8 years to the present. I am getting married in less than one month and teach at the International School of Tegucigalpa. My fiancee will be joining me after the wedding. I introduced her to the wonderful world of orchids by proposing to her in the Orchid House at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. The soft scents of orchids filled our nostrils, it was great! I also recently found out that the national flower of Honduras is the orchid, what a coincidence!

We will be here for at least 2 years. I have settled well and I am looking to start a small collection of plants to nurture and love.

Now time for the orchids...

---------(brief intro over)--------

As some of you may know, orchids grow wild here fairly abundantly. I have seen many different varieties, and I am planning on bringing some home next time I find them.

However, yesterday during an outing we stopped at a road side flower stand (also very abundant). Off to the side, neglected and alone, I found a very large orchid plant mounted on a piece of a tree. So, my impulsive self decided to buy it.

I need help!! I love orchids and understand the basic principles of how they grow in the wild. I have no idea what variety I have or the best way to nurture it. I will assume that I won't be able to buy specific fertilizers and such. However, I am flying back to the states for the wedding, so i might be able to bring some back with me.

I am also assuming the flower guy just picked it off of a tree or something, if that helps. I use a Berky Water Filter for daily consummation and plan on using this to water the little guy.

The room where it is hanging gets morning sun through the window and indirect sun most of the day. It will not receive any direct sunlight where is currently hangs. I do not have any other direct sun light windows and no balcony.

I do not have heating or air conditioning, so humidity should not be an issue. Should I provide any air flow (i.e. fans) other than an open window? (I usually leave them open all the time)

I personally love the symbolism of flowers and especially orchids. My future wife and I want to learn to take care of orchids together!

Thank you in advance for the help and I look forward to learning and posting about my new venture in the world of orchids!

**Pictures are uploaded in my profile, however I cannot link in this thread**


**** link to album added by WhiteRabbit ***** http://www.orchidboard.com/community...hid-adult.html

[sailortom2]

first of all congrats on your up coming wedding..and welcome to the board

[cbuchman]

Continuations on all the exciting development in your world. My wished for mush happiness with your bride.

I've been married for 32 years and my husband is very indulgent of my orchid habit and we have learned lots together.

Once you have your pictures uploaded, more experienced members of this board will be able to help you, though pictures of the flowers may be need too.

[WhiteRabbit]

Glad you found us!

I added the link to your photo album to your post
- you should be able to see some links beneath the individual photos in your album - you can copy and past the "BB Code" into your posts.

More tips for posting photos can be found here: http://www.orchidboard.com/community...ng-photos.html

Let us know if you need more help!

[msaar]

Your plant appears to be a member of the Catisetinae, perhaps a Mormodes species, but there's not enough detail for me to tell.

[jamesgravley]

Thanks to all for the help thus far! (The picture problem won't happen again) Thanks for the congratulations as well.

I looked for a long time yesterday trying to compare pictures. However, I still don't know the species.

The blooms appear to still be in the process of opening. I am not sure what kind of shock the bus ride home put them through, but hopefully they will finish blooming.

Upon further inspection some of the roots are definitely dieing/dead/rotted. From what I have already read, I will need to remount it. Hopefully I can identify before flying back to the states so I can get a good mounting medium.

I have attached a picture of the blooms for easier identification. Thanks again!!

[msaar]

After a bit of research, my best guess, based on flower form and habitat, is Mormodes aromatica. I have not grown this species, so I cannot offer any specific cultural recommendations. Catasetinae, in general, experience a very dry winter rest period, loosing all foliage, and a wet summer growth period. I'm not sure how successfully you will be with this plant indoors without supplemental light.

[jamesgravley]

Thank you so much for the help! I am excited to at least try to grow this little guy. I definitely need to remount it (after the dry season of course).

[Rowangreen]

Congrats on the wedding, and that is a gorgeous plant!

If I was you I'd do some thinking and research before taking plants from the wild or buying from a roadside seller. I don't know what the situation is there, but in many parts of the world taking orchids from the wild is ilegal, and for good reason. Many forests are being stripped of orchids to go for sale, resulting in species being endangered or even extinct in the wild.

One good way to take orchids from the wild is to take only those about to be destroyed by building etc. You might need permits to do this though.