My New Catts.

[Tindomul]

Ok, so the Catts I ordered from The Orchid Shop, the gracious sponsers for the last contest we held, have finally arrived.
I had gotten the names mixed up, I was careless with the tags, but now that one bloomed I got them straight.



This is my Lc. Purple Cascade 'Fragrant Beauty'


And this is my Tokyo Magic.


I was have been slightly careless and gotten the tags mixed up . Well Thankfully one came in full spike, with a big bud so I was able to tell who is who. I hope the plant wasn't shocked into loosing its bloom! It seems like its doing well! Almost completely in bloom now!

The plants came in bright and Early this Saturday at 9:00 AM Sharp!!! They came unplanted, just a ball of roots. So I took some old candle cups, washed them out. Got my LECA balls, and hopefully did a good job at putting them in Semi/Hydro Culture.
I'm very excited, these are my very first Catt. aliance Orchids!!

[justatypn]

Tin...congrats on your new arrivals...they look very healthy, fingers crossed on the bloom and the identifier as well...gl

[Tindomul]

Its already starting to open. Looks red.
Thanks!

[ScottMcC]

look like nice plants. I was a little confused by the phal sitting in the middle at first...

did you drill drainage holes in the side of your s/h pots? (about 1 inch from the bottom) the purpose is to allow you to fill the pot completely when you water, then let it drain down to the level of the holes leaving an adequate reservoir. you can probably do without them by just dumping water out the top or siphoning it off, but it might be a bit of a pain.

you should be able to see what I mean in the picture below. water-filled reservoir below the holes, moisture above by wicking.

[justatypn]

Tind/Scott, do you's have all/most of your plants in S/H. I chatted a bit with Ray and d*** it at the time I had just ordered a large bag of medium and unable to be refunded. Sounds extremely logically and economical, what are your thoughts and any pointers, pros and cons please ... ??

[justatypn]

Tind, can't wait to see it, have her/him pose and snap a shot for us....

[ScottMcC]

Originally Posted by justatypn

Tind/Scott, do you's have all/most of your plants in S/H. I chatted a bit with Ray and d*** it at the time I had just ordered a large bag of medium and unable to be refunded. Sounds extremely logically and economical, what are your thoughts and any pointers, pros and cons please ... ??

I'm brand new at s/h...just repotted my first plants into it a week ago. but...it seems like it's working so far. of my 14 plants, 2 are in s/h, and the rest are in various standard mixes. I'm probably gonna move a few others over when it comes repotting time, but haven't decided yet.

to me it seems very logical and easy. the main benefits I see: more controlled and stable environment at the roots, easier watering (and know exactly when to water, can't overwater), and easier potting. the main con I see is startup cost.

here's a link that you might find helpful:

click here

[Tindomul]

I agree with Scott. I'm partial to the semi/hydo system since I am already familiar with. I use this system to allow tropical plants to grow well inside terrariums. However, this is the first time I have done it on orchids. Im waiting for supplies from Rays and then I will repot one of my Phals. which is currently in sphagnum moss. I couldnt drill any holes becuase the the cups are made of glass. I will have to drain the painful way.

An update. I got the names mixed up, so I will edit my first post.
Also, the one with the bud, Lc. Tokyo Magic is blooming! It looks great and is supposed to get a rosy Vanilla fragrance. Lets hope so. I will take a pic of the bloom as soon as its fully opened.

[justatypn]

I can't wait to see the new bloom Tind...I as well will be new to s/h and going to give it a try. It would give a bit more control over the watering...they do not decompose and you wash them and reuse them...works for me.

[Tindomul]

Ok, the flower on the Tokyo Magic died last week, after a month of blooming!!


But thats ok cuase I found 3 new growths!!! Two before I took the picture and a third after. Ahh, but you can see the third in this pic. Ok so its thebig one in the center and the two little ones to the side .






Now for my Lc. Purple Cascade 'Fragrant Beauty', I hope this blooms for me someday. At first all its roots rotted away, but I insisted on the S/H for it and she stopped throwing a tantrum. No spoiled orchids on my watch!
So she gave up and has grown ROOTS!


P.S. both plants are now in Ray's 5" pots, not the glass pots shown at the beggining of the thread.