Dendobium kingianum (success? finally)

[estación seca]

With the smaller Echinopsis hybrids, flowering is more affected by heavy summer fertilizing, warmth during the growing season, and as much light as possible in winter. They don't need any winter cooling to flower. It might be hard to give them enough natural winter light in Arkansas.

[dbarron]

Yep, that's (light) another factor in overwintering them outside. As it stands, I don't see that I'll need to have them inside except for most of January.

[dbarron]

You were right Roberta! Several more stems have spikes going now. It may be fairly nice in bloom :0

So many dendrobiums spiking right now..just about all of them.

[qbie]

Originally Posted by dbarron

You were right Roberta! Several more stems have spikes going now. It may be fairly nice in bloom :0

So many dendrobiums spiking right now..just about all of them.

If you could, can you please post a pic of a stem in spike? First time I'm trying to grow this orchid type and I see small growths at the tops of some, but would the only way to tell whether these are new flower buds vs keikis be to wait til they're larger and see if any roots develop? The growth on the third one looks different than the rest so I'm hoping that it might be a flower spike. Thanks!






upload image

[dbarron]

Yours are farther along than mine.
I may end up for a lovely crop of keikis but my intuition says not.

[Roberta]

qbie, The first and last photos look "spikey". Patience, the plant will tell you.

dbarron, I think the same of yours... looks "spikey" but the plant will tell you... all in good time.

[qbie]

Thanks Roberta!

Dbarron, I hope you have a crop of lovely blooms this spring!

[qbie]

Sorry, I just realized I may have mis-posted. When I was picking up plants, the listing only said "Dendrobium Kingianum" but the label of the plant in my 3rd picture says "Dendrobium Susan Takahashi." Though canes look similar, I always thought online pictures of the flower looked a little different from those of Kingianums. Per Orchidroots.com there is no kingianum in its ancestry. Majority is biggibum so I think it's a phalaenopsis-type dendrobium hybrid? Sorry for mis-posting!

[dbarron]

I regard biggibum hybrids as easier to flower than kingianum (for me at least). They never fail

[Roberta]

For qbie, note that the care of the two Dendrobium types is quite different - in the San Francisco Bay area, Den. kingianum may do fine outside, unless there is serious frost. It benefits from those temperature swings. Anything with significant Den. biggibum in its ancestry needs to grow much warmer, an indoor baby.