Stanhopea tigrina in wowen coconut

[Roberta]

There are some Vandas that are cold-tolerant and can grow outside. The big, bright hybrids mostly not. (They nearly all have a lot of V. sanderiana in them and that's definitiely a warm grower) But V. tricolor, V. cristata (and their hybrid V. Paki) do fine outside. Also V. roblingiana, V. coerulea do quite well, And for color, there are some Renantheras that are cold tolerant as well (like Ren. imschootiana, Ren. citrina, and several others on my list) , When you're looking at the species, to make a good, educated guess about cold tolerance, go to orchidspecies.com If they come from elevations above about 1000-1200m near the equator, or even only a few hundred meters farther north (like southern China) they will be cold-tolerant. Example, the genus Cleisocentron (gokusingii and and merrillianum) from Borneo (very tropical) from elevation above 1000 m, not only tolerates cold, but the flower color is better in winter than in summer (both species bloom 2-3 times a year) and have truly BLUE flowers...the flowers of the two species look identical, the plants are different. ("coerulea" is blue-violet, not truly blue but is as blue as most orchids get... These little guys are actually blue)

[Kittyfrex]

I didn't mean Vanda as in a particular genus, just the kind of plant. I've always been fed the info that ALL vanda-types are super warm loving. It's not even just that i could get one, but that elevation is enough to alter tolerances/preferances to such a degree... It trow most of what i know about orchids under the bus, and that is, for me, a good thing.

I learn best by experimenting first hand, but i am quite science oriented. Obviously you won't see me growing cacti in sphagnum; maybe it's possible, but it just gives me much more work for no real benefit. I usually tend to take a random peace of advice and roll with it (if it doesn't sound insanely stupid). Since growing orchids outside is something that particulary pleases me for a number of reason and your tips have already done me favours in the past, i'm very keen on using at the very least a very similar approach. I have a few restrepias that have just barely over-summered in a vivarium. C. trichoglossa blumed profusely, but the actual plant doesn't look the best; i have already transplated one outside, noticing a bud in the process. Considering each has their own packet of moss, i don't fear moving them. R. purpurea seems a bit better, but had only flowered once. From what i understand, i should only now start expecting any flowers, and the summer blooms were an exception.

You listed it as outdoorsy. So...lemon covered in rastrepia (not literally) a thing i should aim for? Or should i stick to pots?

Sorry i went so off track. There's a grand total of 0 people i know that actually have more than the basic phal.

[Roberta]

All of my Restrepias grow outdoors. There are, I am sure, some high elevation species that would not do well here since they don't like summer heat. But lots and lots of them do just fine. And many do well mounted. (So they need daily watering, but do dry out quickly and don't seem to mind) Look for Restrepia contorta - while most of the others are seasonal, that one is in bloom on and off all year. In general, most of the Pleurothallid tribe are cool-growers. Some more forgiving of warmth than others. The one caveat, they tend to like pure water (rain, RO, DI). My success rate with the whole group went 'way up when I got a RO system. (My tap water is pretty high in solids).

If any source of orchid information uses terms like "all", "always", "never" ... especially as applies to whole genera, stay away from those. There are even cool-growing Phalenopsis, though they tend to be small ones. And now that other genera got lumped under "Phalaenopsis" that is even more the case. (Phal. hygrochilla, formerly Hygrochilus parishii, is a big plant that looks and grows like a Vanda... I have it in a basket with no medium at all, roots 4 feet/1.2 m long and is very happy outside. Also Phal. japonica formerly Sedirea japonica, with sweetly fragrant flowers. And their hybrid Phal Little One, formerly Vandopirea Little One, also.) So if you see "always" or "never", run the other way. Ask "Why?"

[Kittyfrex]

Originally Posted by Roberta

All of my Restrepias grow outdoors. There are, I am sure, some high elevation species that would not do well here since they don't like summer heat. But lots and lots of them do just fine. And many do well mounted. (So they need daily watering, but do dry out quickly and don't seem to mind) Look for Restrepia contorta - while most of the others are seasonal, that one is in bloom on and off all year. In general, most of the Pleurothallid tribe are cool-growers. Some more forgiving of warmth than others. The one caveat, they tend to like pure water (rain, RO, DI). My success rate with the whole group went 'way up when I got a RO system. (My tap water is pretty high in solids).

If any source of orchid information uses terms like "all", "always", "never" ... especially as applies to whole genera, stay away from those. There are even cool-growing Phalenopsis, though they tend to be small ones. And now that other genera got lumped under "Phalaenopsis" that is even more the case. (Phal. hygrochilla, formerly Hygrochilus parishii, is a big plant that looks and grows like a Vanda... I have it in a basket with no medium at all, roots 4 feet/1.2 m long and is very happy outside. Also Phal. japonica formerly Sedirea japonica, with sweetly fragrant flowers. And their hybrid Phal Little One, formerly Vandopirea Little One, also.) So if you see "always" or "never", run the other way. Ask "Why?"

I have a rainwater collector; all my orchids drink exclusively that with some added fertilizer every so often. No tap water at all. Stanhopea, zygo, cymbs, oncidium hybrids (all rained on as we speak), as well as my new phap, Bulb. eberhardtii, vanilla, cat. And even about 90% of my potted tropicals only get rainwater (coffea, ficus, marathea, cordyline etc.) My tap water is so very rich in mainly calcium that cleaning agents have to be used every few years o things such as boilers and insides of the taps where it calcifies. It's fine for things that don't care about the type of soil so much (looking at you, forest strawberries fruiting for months on end), but most plants don't get water from runaway rocky mountains over the sea. Better safe than sorry.

I've noticed that about "bright shade" or "bright indirect light". Most of those prefer some if not quite a lot of sun (sensevaria being an example; will grow in low light, but put it in part sun and you will regret the growth you missed).
As of late, i've bein trying to do some shallower reasearch as i browse plants (a fun past time; i don't ALWAYS buy more ). Even so, i've put my first restrepia outside on a whim, even tho the suggested winter temps "should not drop bellow 10" in most sources i find, and now i am glad i did.
Comming to generalization, i've noticed temps of 10 and 14C being used for pretty much every and any cooler loving species/hybrid. Is there a reason for the trend or?

Also, god i wish i understood some plants as well as you do orchids.

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by Kittyfrex

Comming to generalization, i've noticed temps of 10 and 14C being used for pretty much every and any cooler loving species/hybrid. Is there a reason for the trend or?

Also, god i wish i understood some plants as well as you do orchids.

Maybe those temps are fairly easy to achieve in a greenhouse, so that's the generalization. And that might be a goal for people who need to grow in one, which includes most of Europe and the US. You and I live in a unique climate that allows us to break most of these rules. Southern and SW Australia and the Cape area of South Africa are just about the only other places like that.

When you're dealing with species, where you can look up the locations where they are native, you can often also look up the temperature records of those areas, knowing that occasionally there can be times where the extremes even go outside those ranges. This applies to other plants as well. Knowledge is power!

[Kittyfrex]

You have given me too much power; My fiance is not gonna be happy to hear about this.

[Roberta]

By the way, Cymbidiums should be fine with tap water. Likewise Cattleyas, and the temperate Australian Dendrobiums (like speciosum and kingianum). People all over southern California, who have water far worse than mine, grow them easily. Paphs, in general, actually love the extra calcium. (Not Phrags though...they like the good stuff) Save the rain water for things that really need it, unless you have surplus.

[Kittyfrex]

Considering the rains have already set in downpours for the season and i wasn't running low, i don't mind. . And that is considering the tank has a hole and needs repairing; it's full when it's at around 40ish% max capacity. And i am having it fixed as soon as i find someone to do it properly.
But if the phap like the calcium, i don't mind giving it special attention.

Note - it cracked me up when i read "they like the good stuff". Hit so close to home i almost fell of a chair laughing.

[Roberta]

The orchid specialist for a large botanical garden near me (Huntington Library, Art Galleries, and Botanical Gardens for those who live near me) found that the Paphs in their world-class collection tended to do better with well water (200-800 parts per million total dissolved solids, mostly calcium carbonate) than with RO. They have an essentially limitless supply of money so cost was no object. The Paphs get well water, the rest of the collection gets RO. You will see instructions for top-dressing Paphs with eggshells, dolomite lime, or other calcium sources. Here (and I think at your house), plain old tap water serves the purpose (and renders the "additives" insoluble and therefore rather useless)

[Kittyfrex]

Oh, that is absolutley the case. Two years ago, we took down our boiler to clean it (been 3 or 4 since last cleaning). You could build a small house from the calcites that collected on the boiler. I don't think there's that much extra of anything else, as this particular place sits on a lot of calcite based rock formations (this very island is one).