Paph lifecycle

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by dbarron

Hah, well my Paph French Macabre (a maudiae type hybrid) is budded. Do I get to count it as 'mine' with it being in my possession for 10 months now, or only if the entire growth occurred under my care? I'll be certain to share when it flowers. Taking a guess Nov-Dec timeframe.
I thought last week when I watered, it was looking likely, but the sheath is now distinct from a normal leaf and I'm sure.

It definitely counts. It likes your care!

[dbarron]

Hey, another of my paphs (a bulldog/complex). I bought it in low bud last November. It flowered in late December-late February (gotta love those huge long lasting blooms).
Sometime in mid spring, it send up it's sole offset, which has grown to be very near the same size as the prior growth (which flowered). It hasn't yet sent up a bud, but I think I'm expecting one *lol*.
The strange thing (is anything really strange with weird interspecific hybrids) is that it has an offshoot or 2nd crown growing from the first leaf of the new growth already.
It absolutely shocks me that this much energy can be derived from a unshaded north facing window...it just seems more than it should be able to provide.
I think the moral of the story above is that they do what they want...but it seems like every growth follows a different rule. *lol* Perpetually surprised.

[estación seca]

A lot of the bulldog types flower in winter. Once Paphs are happy, yes, they often make multiple growths. The ones sold in markets are typically seedlings flowering for the first time.

[dbarron]

Yes, I understand multiple growths and have several of them doing THAT. The wonder was that a not yet mature new growth is sending out an even newer growth, it's not coming from the mature growth....it's growing directly between the lower leaves of a growth that has only manifested in the last six months and not yet reached full maturity itself.

[dbarron]

Err, I took a good look at that bulldog while ago. It's actually completed the leaf cycle. It has produced that small leaf preparatory to flowering. So..I guess it's more proactive (and less than a 12 month cycle this time) but it is indeed time to produce the next new growth.
This makes me happy, this is my first bulldog and it does look like it's going to be an easy and reliable (should I be crossing my toes and knocking on wood?) bloomer.

[estación seca]

I've found the complex Paph. hybrids to be some of the easiest to grow orchids in a typical home. I think people run into trouble by forgetting to water, or by not repotting every 1-2 years.

Going completely dry just once may set them back for months, and doing this two or three times is enough to kill a lot of them. Paph. medium kept properly moist decays into anaerobic mush quickly, and their roots will rot if this happens.

This is one orchid that is much better to water too often than not enough. If the medium be sufficiently well aerated, they could be watered daily.

[Fairorchids]

Originally Posted by estación seca

I've found the complex Paph. hybrids to be some of the easiest to grow orchids in a typical home. I think people run into trouble by forgetting to water, or by not repotting every 1-2 years.

Going completely dry just once may set them back for months, and doing this two or three times is enough to kill a lot of them. Paph. medium kept properly moist decays into anaerobic mush quickly, and their roots will rot if this happens.

This is one orchid that is much better to water too often than not enough. If the medium be sufficiently well aerated, they could be watered daily.

Amen

[dbarron]

I'm a heathen and typically water about every 4-5 days. Probably drier than they'd like..but all seems to be going well, with several paphs showing buds (out of my ten or so).

[Jmoney]

Originally Posted by dbarron

I'm a heathen and typically water about every 4-5 days. Probably drier than they'd like..but all seems to be going well, with several paphs showing buds (out of my ten or so).

dont change a thing.

I don't disagree that paphs hate drying out, but most mixes we use are not designed for daily watering (under home conditions).

[Roberta]

The answer to "when to water?" is different depending on medium, humidity, temperature, light... different at your place than my place. These don't like to dry out. How you achieve that will vary. there is no one "right" answer.