Dendrobium cuthbertsonii - new babies

[Jeff9]

Originally Posted by Duane McDowell

My embarrassing admission - I've never checked. I think it tops out at around 75 during the day during the summer and drops to around 55 on the coldest nights during the winter, but I'll need to get a thermometer down there sometime.
I've had a couple of Den. cuthbertsonii for about 6 months, so they've seen the hottest I have to offer - they're doing great. Lots of strong new growth, excellent roots.

9 different Oxyglossum seedlings? That sounds fantastic. I love the group. What sort of seedlings did you order?

Thanks Duane, please do let me know if you verify the temperatures.
Unfortunately my basement doesnt get that cold, it goes to about 15C coldest, so i am going to add a small peltier element from a cooler box untill i have something more suitable.

I will be growing them on an epiweb IIS wall 50cm wide, 45 cm high and about 10cm deep, with 1x 39W light on each side of the wall.

The seedlings i have ordered [awaiting confirmation];

Dendrobium brassii
Dendrobium cyanocentrum blue & white
Dendrobium masarangense
Dendrobium nebularum
Dendrobium prasinum
Dendrobum seranicum
Dendrobium subacaule
Dendrobium subuliferum
Dendrobium vexillarius


I am currently growing:
D. laevifolium
D. petiolatum
D. violaceum

petiolatum isnt doing very well yet but i think it will come around once it gets into the cooler tank.

i wont put all on the epiweb iis, i will probably keep the warmer ones in my main orchidarium

[Vanda lover]

Has anyone tried vase culture for dendrobium cuthbertsonii? It would seem that, from what I know of their growing conditions, vase culture should be good for them. I've read that they grow best if their roots are kept cool and moist, while the plant itself should be kept drier.

Nancy

[smweaver]

Great looking plants, Duane. I was sorely tempted to get some of these from Golden Gate, but chickened out in the end and purchased some of their Rhyncholaelia digbyanas instead (something I've had success with in the past and which wouldn't cause me the same level of anxiety as those little dendrobiums would!). I'll be interested in finding out how they do for you after they've spent some time in your terrarium.

Steve

[smweaver]

Oops! I meant Gold Country Orchids, not Golden Gate (might pay to proofread prior to hitting the "post" button!).

[Vanda lover]

Nancy

Originally Posted by Jeff9

Thanks Duane, please do let me know if you verify the temperatures.
Unfortunately my basement doesnt get that cold, it goes to about 15C coldest, so i am going to add a small peltier element from a cooler box untill i have something more suitable.

I will be growing them on an epiweb IIS wall 50cm wide, 45 cm high and about 10cm deep, with 1x 39W light on each side of the wall.

The seedlings i have ordered [awaiting confirmation];

Dendrobium brassii
Dendrobium cyanocentrum blue & white
Dendrobium masarangense
Dendrobium nebularum
Dendrobium prasinum
Dendrobum seranicum
Dendrobium subacaule
Dendrobium subuliferum
Dendrobium vexillarius


I am currently growing:
D. laevifolium
D. petiolatum
D. violaceum

petiolatum isnt doing very well yet but i think it will come around once it gets into the cooler tank.

i wont put all on the epiweb iis, i will probably keep the warmer ones in my main orchidarium

[Vanda lover]

I've read that it isn't that Dendrobium Cuthbersonii have to be kept very cool, but that they can't stand temps of over 80 for very long. They do need cooler night temps but perhaps 15c would be cool enough.

[Duane McDowell]

Here's a quote from my friend Leo Schordje in Chicago. What he says is true for many "cool growing" orchids:
********************************
I had a cuthbertsonii here in Chicago, in a house without air conditioning. Kept it going for about 12 years, with blooms several times a year until the year before the end of the line for the plant. It doesn't need to be that cool, it just doesn't want to deal with heat. I made the mistake of trying a new potting mix on it without learning how often to water it. I ran the plant too dry for several months, maybe longer before I realized the mistake I made. The plant never recovered.

Point is, Den cuthbersonii will survive Chicago summers, if they are in a cool, unheated, unfinished basement, under lights. Temperatures inside were the same as or a little warmer than the nightime outside temperature, but the basement did stay 5 or 10 degrees cooler than outside in the heat of the afternoon sun.

Don't let them dry out, and light as for Phals or Paphs and the plants should grow fine. They may not be as goof-proof as a Phalaenopsis, definitely not a beginner's plant, but they are not that hard to grow, just a bit unforgiving of neglect & damage to roots.

[Vanda lover]

Good information, thanks. I have tracked down a couple of growers here on the island and am trying to decide if I have the nerve to try these again now that we live where conditions are better for them.

[Tom-DE]

Duane, those are nice plants. Is the pink one the "Pink Ball" selfing or crossed with some other clone?

One note for Den. cuthbertsonii--do not spray them with any oil based insecticide or agriculture oil, like Sunoil.

[SOS]

Its a cross. I asked about a division of that clone, and it was expensive. A rightly awarded one though.