Expanding the collection to include onc's and catt's?

[Bill U.]

Hi everyone,

This is more of a question-related post for those who have grown these orchids, or orchids that are similar.

I have been looking to expand my collection from some phals and a phrag to include the oncidiums and cattleyas. However, I am somewhat limited in my growing space and with the specialized care that I can give (in terms of very finicky temperatures, etc).

I have been looking at the following orchids from Norman's Orchids (orchids.com):

Lc. Purple Cascade 'Fragrance Princess' (C. Interglossa x Lc. Tokyo Magic)

Pot. (Rth.) Duh's Passion (Pot. Duh's Sweet x Pot. Love Passion)

Onc. Green Valley Sweet 'Heavenly' AM/ AOS (Onc. John Louis Shirah x Onc. Auntie Baby)

Bllra. 'Smile Eri' (Bllra. Tahoma Glacier x Oda. Toroma x Oda. Ingera)

Basically I have a few basic questions about all of these orchids:

1) How many blooms can I expect per year? (1/yr, 2/yr, etc)
2) Do they need a cold chill to induce blooming? If yes, what kind of chill would they need?
3) Rough height/size (including inflorescence)?
4) Good for a beginner to the genus?

If anyone could give any insight into any of these guys, I would greatly appreciate it! Also, if you would suggest one of them over the other, please let me know that too!

I am growing on a windowsill (big windowsill) that is supplemented with grow lights and light requirements are not an issue as I will be more than happy to supplement with additional lighting as needed

[orchidsarefun]

have you been to Hausermann's - just outside Chicago ?
My advice is to go there and see, touch and smell the orchids........and ask them all your questions. They have an incredible selection.

[Bill U.]

I have been to Hausermann's in the past. Unfortunately they didn't have much of an answer other than general care of onc's and catt's with the caveat that every cultivar is different with the intergenerics... Also some of the multi-bloomers/year were too big for my grow area. I was interested in the Onc. Green Valley 'Heavenly' AM/AOS because it was reported to be the smaller version of Onc. Sharry Baby- I don't know if I can handle how big Sharry Baby can get.

I may have to just go again sometime in the future to see what I may be able to find.

[DavidCampen]

Orchids.com is one of the last places I would consider buying plants from. Myself and others who have bought plants from there are of the opinion that the qualitiy is, at best, erratic.

[orchidsarefun]

have you looked at Onc Twinkle ? They are relatively tiny compared to a normal oncid. I woulld advise you to stay away from Sharry Baby grexes as they all seem to grow huge.

Hausermann's do have a lot of plants that aren't listed on their website, so its worth a trip.

[Onyx]

Guesstimating from my giant monster plant, if you kept Green Valley Sweet to 3 or 4 pbulbs, it would probably be reasonably compact diameter-wise assuming it wasn't crawling out of the pot. It's about 16"-18" tall from the top of the pot to the tallest leaf. I think the stake they were using for the blooms was somewhere between 2.5 and 3 ft tall (I trashed it, so can't look), so that should give you an idea of how big that was. Obviously will get some better info once I divide mine next week.

Otherwise, pretty useless here, as you know! Haha.

You know, looking at the location of Norman's Orchids, I wouldn't be surprised if my plant came from there originally since the store is like 30ish miles away.

[Leafmite]

The onc. Twinkles can bloom twice a year or more once established for a few years. There is a great variety. I have one that smells just like Sharry Baby and another that smells of red tulip. There is also oncidium cheiroporum which blooms but once a year but is really lovely. Burr. Nelly Isler, a hybrid (with onc.) isn't too bad on size and blooms three times a year...or more. Mine was on the third blooming in nine months when I gave it as a Christmas present (I replaced it quickly). It smells wonderful. I also have a zygo Kiwi which will stay small (Porters is a good place to buy zygos).
I really can't advise you too much on cattleyas because mine are mostly seedlings so I don't know how often they will bloom...except for the aclandiae. It stays small and blooms at least twice a year (mine is still a seedling). You can mount it bareroot...the fragrance is wonderful. Another small one is walkeriana, another seedling. It will also be fragrant. It does well in a plastic vanda basket. I am space challenged, too, so I understand.
I also grow some other small ones, too, that are easy to grow. Good luck!!!

---------- Post added at 03:48 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:36 PM ----------

None that I mentioned need a chill. My onc. are under six inches, with spikes (I don't stake them). The Burr. Nelly Isler spikes can be pretty tall, I admit, but not wildly so, the cattleyas are both small.
Here are some other great mini's: dendrobium oligophyllum, Haraella rectrocalla, Tuberolabium woodii, ornithophora radicans (this loves water), brassavola Little Stars or nodosa, angraecum didieri, and vanda (neofinetia) falcata.

[tucker85]

I grow a lot of cattleyas. I don't have the two you mentioned but they look like good choices because they're compact growing plants which is perfect for a windowsill. Purple Cascade sounds particularly good because it's free blooming. Good luck.

[Bill U.]

Thank you all for you inputs! It's great to hear about other orchids that I would never have thought of (or even heard about haha)!

It's also good to know that many have had negative experiences with Orchids.com before I go and spend LOTS of money there and just get a disappointment... :P

I really like the look of Burr. Nelly Isler and Onc. Twinkle! I think I might venture with those first, and maybe save the catt's for when I go exploring into Hausermann's

[Leafmite]

Hausermann's is where I bought the replacement Nelly Isler. I have bought and given these as gifts and they do very well and rebloom easily for our friends and family. It is a winner.
Hausermann's can advise you about the different cattleyas and how often they bloom. So many cattleyas bloom just once a year but there are also those that bloom more frequently. I have some of both. I always contemplate getting rid of all of the once a year bloomers but the nicer ones and minis are still with me. And, unthinkingly, I buy more. Good luck!