Ludisia discolor

[mimigirl]

How long does it take for this little jewel to branch out? Is there something i need to do to encourage it? Its really happy but just grows straight up. Thanks in advance.

[Ray]

Yes, they can grow fairly tall, and just when you're fed up and want to do some chopping, new growths will appear from a sub-surface rhizome.

[Paul]

IME, they don't branch a lot. Most of the growth will typically be linear. The only time I typically see branching is when the stem is cut -- in which case you may get one or two leads from the rooted stem (above or below ground) -- or after leading growth blooms. (The flower stalk uses up/destroys the apical meristem tissue so in order to continue growing, a new lead/branch must be generated.)

[tropterrarium]

They are quite vine-like, but mine branch maybe once a year, or about every 8-10 inches of stem. I could imagine that there is quite a bit of variation amongst cultivars/genotypes/collections. Seems also to tolerate wide temp ranges, I grow the same clone in cool and in warm and can't say which one it likes better. Works for me!

[dimithar]

If you have many nodes shallowly buried in the medium, new growths might emerge from them in the fall months. My Ludisia did that last year and from three long buried stalks I ended up with a dozen You can also chop up the long stalks to get new plantlets - 2/3 nodes per cutting are enough to start a new growth.

[mimigirl]

I hate to cut it since its only about 3-4" tall. Can it be getting too much light? Looks healthy and looks like a bud (?) might be forming.

[dimithar]

Just leave it be, it will grow You can still expect new growth on a young plant in fall or spring, regardless of the fact if it's bloomed or not. Too much light will make the leaves lighter and softer, but it won't inhibit the growth. If the leaves aren't turning pink or sagging, the plant can take the light and if you place it in a shadier location, they will return their colour. If you post a picture we could judge by the leaves...

[mimigirl]

Hope i uploaded the pics and they show. First are these ludiscia discolor commom? The one in spike is the one that doesnt branch out or get taller. The other one is getting tall but i thought they grew vertically.

[mimigirl]

Here is other pic. I m having trouble.....

[dimithar]

The first plant isn't a Ludisia discolor, looks to me like an Anoectochilus sp., maybe Anoectochilus chapensis. You'll be able to tell for sure when it blooms anyway.
The second is a Ludisia, possibly a Dawsoniana var. (are the veins really red? these are hard to photograph and it's hard to really tell from photos). The red ludisia is very common, although ironically I don't have one of them yet

P.S. The Anoectochilus with the spike won't grow any more. When it's done blooming, a new growth will emerge from the stalk.