Newly arrived orchids. What should I do?

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by Zindaginha

The wall is about 6" from the light.

Since I just got them, does it make sense to leave them in this spot for a couple more days before moving them into more intense light?

I agree. Actually, that's pretty close to the light. About right for the Sophronitis (don't think it needs any more intensity than that). The Den and the Eria may benefit from a little more distance (and therefore a bit lower intensity) One of the advantages of the egg-crate scheme is that it makes it easy to fine-tune this.

[Zindaginha]

These are long posts, but I'm hoping that maybe someone out there will appreciate reading details in my care and conditions, regardless of how the orchids turn out.

Here's a one month update on my Tarzane mini orchids:

To refresh, I received a mounted Sophronitis Cernua, a mounted Eria Pannea and a Dendrobium reflexitepalum that was in a net basket inside a regular plastic pot with a tiny bit of bark fused to the roots.

I'll try to post pics, but will do so in a separate post, since I've had trouble posting pics before.

My initial growing set up: an old desk converted to a plant table in the corner of my room, about five feet from a large eastern window with a single 123W HO T5 running 13 hours. I had the Eria and the Sophronitis mounted on the wall about 8" from the light and the Den was stuck in a glass jar with leca beads on the bottom and then sphagnum moss on the top because I was so freaked out about how thin and exposed its roots were. RH was around 45% and temps fluctuated between 62-72 degrees. I would also run two tiny humidifiers for about an hour in the am and pm, and dunked each orchid in RO water every am.

Changes:

The plant table set up was traded for a zipperable green house tent shelf or whatever from Target. A huuuuge improvement! My humidity can easily be bumped up to 95%. I've also added some LED strips. BUT...the Sophronitis, which came with hygrolon over the roots, might appreciate a different location so just today I hung it next to my window and about 1.5 feet from a 55W CFL.

Now, on to the plants:

Hands down, the most obviously happy plant is the Eria Pannea. It came with a fuzzy little keiki (white fuzz is part of the healthy physiognomy of the species) and these beautiful thin, cigar-like leaves that had some mechanical damage. It also seems like it just doesn't have any roots? I really can't tell. Regardless, the leaves are getting longer and the keiki has started putting out a new leaf. But most exciting are the four new growths that I discovered three days ago! I think two are new leaves and two are roots.

Sophronitis cernua: This one has been doing ok. Frankly, I inspected the roots below the hygrolon when I got it and then didn't look at them for two weeks, by which time it became apparent that they were a little soggy and now some parts have died:/. I dealt with this by removing the hygrolon, though now that I'm keeping the plant next to my window, I've added it back. The leaves all seem happy, though, and I've got two new leaves coming in fairly fast.

Dendrobium reflexitepalum: I won't lie, the sight of that bird's nest of exposed, hair-like roots is what set me into my initial panic. I still feel like I don't really understand this plant, but it isn't doing TOO bad. Like the Soph, it's roots have suffered under my care. A week ago, I abandoned the leca jar set up. Soaking this plant daily and then leaving it in the jar led to some roots going brown. Other roots, though, are still green and white and the situation seems to have stabilized over the past two weeks--I don't feel like the brown parts are increasing, anyway. I have also been progressively moving the orchid closer to the light. The leaves are growing, even in spite of suffering some punctures from my cat's teeth.

So, in short: I haven't killed any of these orchids, yet, and I do feel like I am starting to get a grasp on the unique cause and effect conditions for each of them, even the Reflexitepalum.

[Zindaginha]

The photo with my hand shows the tiny new leaf on the fuzzy keiki. The others are close-ups of what I believe are budding leaves and roots on the mother.

[Zindaginha]

Here is a photo of the Sophronitis cernua, within the yellow circle shows one of the new growths--the other two new leaves are tucked behind mature leaves and impossible to photograph. I do feel like the circled growth is a little different in shape from the other two, which basically have developed as mini-ovals. This one is kind of a half-oval.

You can also see the extent of the moisture damage to the roots--the hanging root seems just dead to me.

[Roberta]

Congratulations on the new growths! This one hides the flowers inside the new leaves (no sheaths) so you may get an extra surprise when they do unfold. If the developing growth is fat, a great sign.

[Zindaginha]

Originally Posted by Roberta

Congratulations on the new growths! This one hides the flowers inside the new leaves (no sheaths) so you may get an extra surprise when they do unfold. If the developing growth is fat, a great sign.

I'll keep my fingers crossed, then!

[Roberta]

Another thing to watch... since it looks like it is producing new growth in several directions you may be OK, but keep an eye out for new roots. If they are not in the direction of the mount, remount before they emerge farther - the only roots that will attach to the mount are the new ones. From an aesthetic point of view it is tempting to put the back of the plant next to the mount - but that doesn't work. The direction of growth needs to be next to the mount. If it has new growth in several directions, you have options. But it's the roots not the growth you are interested in for getting it to establish on the mount.

Here's a happy S. cernua. It has only been on the mount for about a year and a half... see how the roots can attach.

[estación seca]

I would suggest beginning with easy-to-grow orchids, learning their ways, then branching out.

You can use online herbarium resources to find out where collected specimens came from, then look up the weather patterns there. You will also have to research to find out in which microclimate plants grow. For example, even in many seasonally dry thorn forests, there are waterfalls with spray for much of the year. Trying to grow an orchid from the spray zone using only the information for the entire thorn forest would be a mistake.

[Zindaginha]

Originally Posted by Roberta

Another thing to watch... since it looks like it is producing new growth in several directions you may be OK, but keep an eye out for new roots. If they are not in the direction of the mount, remount before they emerge farther - the only roots that will attach to the mount are the new ones. From an aesthetic point of view it is tempting to put the back of the plant next to the mount - but that doesn't work. The direction of growth needs to be next to the mount. If it has new growth in several directions, you have options. But it's the roots not the growth you are interested in for getting it to establish on the mount.

Here's a happy S. cernua. It has only been on the mount for about a year and a half... see how the roots can attach.

Are you recommending I take the sophronitis and turn it around on the mount? It was sent to me freshly re-mounted (with part of the old mount still attached), so I could re-do it again easily enough.

If the orchid is securly attached to the mount (and this one is, by an elastic thread) does it really matter if the roots don't establish in the mount?

---------- Post added at 12:16 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:11 AM ----------

Originally Posted by estación seca

I would suggest beginning with easy-to-grow orchids, learning their ways, then branching out.

You can use online herbarium resources to find out where collected specimens came from, then look up the weather patterns there. You will also have to research to find out in which microclimate plants grow. For example, even in many seasonally dry thorn forests, there are waterfalls with spray for much of the year. Trying to grow an orchid from the spray zone using only the information for the entire thorn forest would be a mistake.

Good advice! I picked these species specifically because I thought they'd fit my conditions, but still I am new at orchids so there is much I didn't realize I didn't know till I had the plants.

I have been trying to find out as much as possible about the natural homes of these plants, as well as how successful indoor growers care for them, but they are generally less popular species and it has been hard to find specific information. A lot of info tends to be quite broad, like "Minas Gerais--XXX meters to XXXX meters", but I have been looking in the wrong places. I hadn't thought of checking herbariums and that is a great idea! Thanks!

[Roberta]

If it was already mounted (and had old mount attached), then leave it alone. The person you got it from hopefully knew what they were doing. I though that this was one that you had gotten bare root.