Let's make sure I don't kill all of my orchids! - Orchid Board

inle · #1 10-01-2012, 12:01 AM

Hello!!!

Basic backstory, here........

Awhile back, I bought a phal as a gift for my boyfriend's office. He kind of neglected it. He didn't meant to, but he's more of a cactus/aloe vera/tropical foliage kinda guy. I later replaced it with lucky bamboo in the shape of hearts, and took the little phal home. I fed it and lit it and watered it accordingly and it seemed to do very well, and is still happy and alive today. It even sent up a second flower spike and all is well in Phalaenopsis Land.

So my birthday was this month, and I decided that I wanted to start collecting orchids. I mentioned it in passing to various friends- all of whom know me as a vegetable gardener and occasional purveyor of lucky bamboo houseplants- and I figured that I'd get oh...one or two orchids, probably pink or white phals, whatevs, right? Probably someone went to a grocery store, saw 'em, picked one up.....yeah, not.

I got ten.
And not just phals, though I got a few of those, too.

Instead, I got 5 phals, 2 dendrobiums, a green lady slipper, an oncidium, and a miltassia. Did I know what the latter two were? No, I had someone kindly ID them for me.

So this is what I did:
thankfully, all of them came in a clear pot inside of a decorative pot, making the roots easy to observe.

So I pulled out the clear pots and checked on the roots. to be honest, some of them were soooo tightly packed in moss I gently loosened it up to help with watering. I don't want my beautiful, sudden, accidental orchid collection to die. I will be so infinitely depressed if this happens.

All of the roots were green/whitish and firm/plump, not brown or mushy.

I have them set up in various places in the house. To be frank, I'm trying to figure out the ideal lighting situation. I have some by my African violets by some plant lamps. The room is very bright and with the supplemental light the violets do really well, so I am hoping the same will happen with this orchid situation....?

I keep the fans on low to get some air circulation going, nothing extreme, but I have pet house rabbits and I like to keep it going for them as well.

I set up some terra cotta pot bottoms with some glass beads in them, with water, to help with humidity. I have to fill them up every couple of days.

Some questions:
what brand of food do I buy? Which is the best? I don't have a problem ordering from online sources if it's 239847293874x better than the stuff at Lowe's.....I just gave my phal before some of the stuff from there.

How long will it take an orchid to develop symptoms of improper lighting?

Do each of these orchids prefer individual lighting situations? I'd imagine so, wouldn't they?

One person bought me a mister to go with it.....so how exactly does one mist their orchids? Leaves, flowers, everything....?

and finally, some of the gorgeous pics of my orchids.

https://skydrive.live.com/#cid=4EA9B...9853AF030D!723

okay maybe not so gorgeous because they were all taken on my cell phone. One was literally delivered to me by a friend while I was shopping at Lowe's....hence the one in the shopping cart......

The first one is my first white/purple phal. It's the smallest of the bunch.

Carpe Diem · #2 10-01-2012, 12:16 AM

to the OB! Not to worry, help will arrive shortly, not from me though, I'm a beginner and only have Phal's figured out - I think.

Nice Birthday presents!

Wrebbitrocks · #3 10-01-2012, 05:14 AM

im not too much of an expert either but ive kept these plants alive so far. you got pics of the plants themselves? it sounds like youve got the right conditions to keep them alive. phals like what youve described and so will the paph. the dendrobiums, miltassia and oncidium (miltassia is related to oncidium btw) like a bit more light but we dont know your light setup just yet so you may or may not be providing the light. dont spray the blooms themselves or you can get wet spots that will shorten the bloom life. water around once a week. immediatey after watering feel the weight of the pot. that way around a week later (maybe more or less) when it dries you can feel when the plant needs water. also its in clear pots so you can see their roots. all of them seem to grow in intermediate temps fine for me. and as for food, lowes carries different kinds (at least here) as long as you chose a balanced fertilizer and use the right concentration of food youll be fine. a little fertilizer is better than nothing. others will help out more

cbuchman · #4 10-01-2012, 10:28 AM

You have great friends! This is a very nice collection.

As I started to learn more about the subtitles of the various genus' cultural requirements I found the AOS Culture sheets (AOS Culture Sheets) to be very helpful. AOS (American Orchid Society) also has information on other "basics" at Orchid Basics. They even have videos on YouTube for potting and the like.

And, of course, you will find this Board to be a wealth of information.

inle · #5 10-01-2012, 11:08 AM

heh yeah, I do have some good friends. They're all gardening friends, so they have a decent idea of where to get nice plants. But I REALLY wasn't expecting to get so many at the same time, and so many different kinds.

The miltassia and the spotted phal were from my boyfriend. He surprised me with the phal for my actual birthday, then saw the miltassia and thought it was cool so he just bought it. Two of the smaller phals and the two dendrobiums were presents from two friends. They got them on sale. So I got plenty, lol.....

I have the dendrobiums in an east windowsill. The miltassia and oncidium are big so I'm trying to find a spot in the same room (it's the kitchen.) My kitchen has two windowsills- one that actually has sunlight coming thru it, and another that goes to the garage and is really more decorative. but, it gets bright light as well. It isn't a large room.

When I went to check on the paph this morning, the flower looked shrivelly and like it was about to fall off .I've really no idea when it bloomed but I am disappointed when just 2-3 days ago it was form and beautiful.

I can get pics of the plants/leaves when I get home.

terracotta7 · #6 10-01-2012, 12:44 PM

Happy Birthday! Welcome to Orchid Board!

That is a wonderful collection to start out with! You have a bit of a headstart because you have several types to experiment with and see what does the best in your environment/home.

This is a great place to ask questions on things that come up day by day. It sounds like you have made a very good beginning and I am sure that you will be successful for a long time to come. Enjoy your blooms!

inle · #7 10-01-2012, 06:57 PM

so um.

Local florist had an orchid sale today.
$60 orchids for......$10 with blooms, $5 without blooms.

So um.
I have two more.
They're oncidiums, beautiful fall colors.

This orchid thing is addictive....
Added them to the album on my Skydrive.

dounoharm · #8 10-01-2012, 11:23 PM

lmao....ya, you will fit right in....we dont hesitate to share our fav online buying experiences either.....paph flowers usually dont last like phals do...and when they are done they fall right off....they may have opened in the store ages ago and you just bought when they were on the way out...not to worry, they will bloom again with proper care.....frequently also, a new plant will go into a bit of a shock when we bring them home, this can cause flower drop as well....gl and welcome!