Encyclia polybulbon growth experiment

[catherinecarney]

Weekly update (OK, it's been a little more than a week....)

#1: no new growth, but roots greening up and pseudobulbs plumper since doing the "humidity tent" (aka vented plastic bag) a week ago. Loss of multiple leaves (yellowed and dropped) from backbulbs, no signs of crown or root rot (leaf loss possibly part of normal growth cycle or due to stress?).

#2: leaf on first lead developing, second lead continuing to grow, two leaves yellowing and probably will drop soon (possible normal growth cycle?). Pseudobulbs plump, no signs of rot anywhere.

#3: one leaf yellowing (possible normal?), everything else apparently healthy. Pseudobulbs plump, roots green.

So, #1 continues to struggle, and the multiple leaf loss from the backbulbs is a concern. Good news for #1 is that the roots are greening up and the pseudobulbs are filling out with the increase in humidity.

#2 still seems to be doing the best so far, with healthy new growth and that I hope is a normal loss of two leaves on the backbulbs. #3 is doing far better than #1 but not as well as #3.

I did take some time this week to look at pix of E. polybulbon in the wild (thank you IOSPE!) and I find it interesting that every one of the ones I found showed them with their roots growing over and through a shallow layer of live moss on the bark of trees. To me this indicates that they have fairly constant moisture (either via daily rains or dew) and high humidity most of the time--which explains why #2 is doing best....

Catherine

[tucker85]

Originally Posted by catherinecarney

Weekly update (OK, it's been a little more than a week....)

#1: no new growth, but roots greening up and pseudobulbs plumper since doing the "humidity tent" (aka vented plastic bag) a week ago. Loss of multiple leaves (yellowed and dropped) from backbulbs, no signs of crown or root rot (leaf loss possibly part of normal growth cycle or due to stress?).

#2: leaf on first lead developing, second lead continuing to grow, two leaves yellowing and probably will drop soon (possible normal growth cycle?). Pseudobulbs plump, no signs of rot anywhere.

#3: one leaf yellowing (possible normal?), everything else apparently healthy. Pseudobulbs plump, roots green.

So, #1 continues to struggle, and the multiple leaf loss from the backbulbs is a concern. Good news for #1 is that the roots are greening up and the pseudobulbs are filling out with the increase in humidity.

#2 still seems to be doing the best so far, with healthy new growth and that I hope is a normal loss of two leaves on the backbulbs. #3 is doing far better than #1 but not as well as #3.

I did take some time this week to look at pix of E. polybulbon in the wild (thank you IOSPE!) and I find it interesting that every one of the ones I found showed them with their roots growing over and through a shallow layer of live moss on the bark of trees. To me this indicates that they have fairly constant moisture (either via daily rains or dew) and high humidity most of the time--which explains why #2 is doing best....

Catherine

It sounds like one conclusion so far is that orchids grow better in high humidity. Unfortunately that's one of the most difficult environmental elements for the home orchid grower to control. Here in South Florida we're lucky to have high humidity for much of the year. It's tough on people but great for orchids. Keep up the good work and keep us posted on the results.

[catherinecarney]

Thanks Tucker!

Well, the preliminary results do seem to indicate high humidity for this species (or these samples), but there may be more going on here....

#2 also has access to constant moisture at the roots since the branch it's lying on is constantly damp. #3 does not have this access, but it does have the humidity, and #1 has a moist substrate as well (I've started watering while the bark is still damp). One of the things that's stressed with watering is to allow the substrate to dry between waterings, but my results seem to contradict that, at least for these samples.

Another interesting item of note: growers stress the need for airflow to go with the high humidity--stagnant air is a big no-no. Yet, both #2 and #3 are in closed systems with extremely limited air movement due to the aquarium covers--and neither are showing signs of rot or fungus.

The results I've gotten so far shouldn't be taken as proven by any stretch--the sample is extremely tiny, the experiment is still in early stages (given that orchids grow relatively slowly, there could be changes over time), and there may be variables that I haven't accounted for (do I have an "aberrant" cultivar that happens to like extreme conditions, what about the lighting--the bulbs in one tank are newer than in the other, etc).

So, I wouldn't say that any of these results are conclusive by themselves, but they may give other newbies some direction when they try this species (or other similar ones)....And if more people document their conditions, over time we will get a better idea of the growing conditions (or range of them) that work for a given species.

Catherine

[catherinecarney]

Hi gang--

OK, here's the latest update--and the news is not good for #1 ...

#2 continues to grow well, and the new leads are opening leaves and sending out roots which will hopefully anchor it to the branch that overhangs the water in the paludarium. No additional leaf drop, pseudobulbs plump and healthy. Definitely a happy little plant....

#3 is sending out a new lead and possibly new roots as well. Notice that it took longer to start to grow when compared to #2, and is still growing more slowly--but it IS growing....

#1 sad to say seems to have bitten the dust. Pseudobulbs have dropped virtually all leaves, the bulbs themselves have turned an olive green to brown color and are going mushy or have dried up entirely to papery husks, even with the humidity tent. In an effort to salvage part of this sample, one section with what appeared to be healthy pseudobulbs (and a few leaves) was moved to the cork background of a paludarium (similar to the situation for #3).

So, looks like I have once again shown that I have a brown thumb when it comes to orchids, at least as far as #1 goes. I hate losing plants, and if I didn't have the success I seem to have with #2 and #3 I would probably give up on this species as being "hard."

I plan to continue to document what happens with this plant, with updates every couple of weeks.

Catherine

[catherinecarney]

Yet another update, and #1 (conventionally potted in bark) is definitely not happy....

#1 is all but dead--I finally removed the last few pseudobulbs from the bark and saucer and pinned them to the cork paludarium background in a tank. Lo and behold, a week later the near dead thing is perking up--bulbs are greener (they were olive green to brown before) and plump. No new growth, but no new leaf drop and better than what it looked like before I put it in the tank.

#2 (the piece with constant dampness and humidity) now has nice roots growing from the new leads that are starting to anchor it to the wood on the background. Both new leads are doing this and it is putting out another new growth. I'm starting to see why the sources I've read describe it as fast growing....

#3 (the piece on a cork background with just humidity)--definitely a new lead forming and the starts of tiny new roots. Not as happy as #2, but growing and doing far better than #1....

So, I've ended up putting #1 into similar conditions to #3 and it seems to be doing better. I picked up a Tolumnia/Onc. velutina this weekend with multiple pieces and plan to do a similar growth experiment when I repot it later this week....

Catherine