hello, new from norcal - Orchid Board

deathofregret · #1 05-10-2010, 07:39 PM

hello orchid board,

my name is heather and i'm a new member - as well as being new to orchids! i live in northern california, near the bay area. i'm looking forward to learning a lot about my new plants and becoming a more experienced orchid owner! right now i own two phalaenopsis, a miltonia (robert jackson "wild thing") and what i think are two oncidiums. i'm not sure about the varieties on anything other than the milt., so it would be awesome if anyone could help!

it's nice to meet everyone.

- h

RosieC · #2 05-10-2010, 07:58 PM

Hi Heather and welcome to Orchid Board

Wonderful orchids you have there.

Phals are very hard to ID if not tagged. There are so many unregistered ones out there that even if you find one that is close you can't be certain that's what you have.

Your yellow Onc looks very like Sweet Sugar to me. I could be wrong though.

Not sure that the last pic is a pure Onc, it could be a hybrid with another genus. Can't really help on the ID for that I'm afraid.

WhiteRabbit · #3 05-10-2010, 08:00 PM

welcome!

I'm sure you will soon have many more orchids - especially after joining orchid board - lots of enablers here

I think your Oncidium might be Sweet Sugar ? The other is likely an Oncidium alliance inter-generic hybrid - Odontoglossum in there probably.

I'm in south bay area and have found many Oncidium alliance plants do quite well here.

This is a great board - lots of friendly people happy to answer questions!

deathofregret · #4 05-10-2010, 08:08 PM

oh yes, i could be in serious trouble with this place. my husband is already exasperated with my new obsession, but how could you not love these beautiful plants? i'm trying to bone up my knowledge on the cheap and easy orchids before i purchase anything more expensive - no desire to kill any plants here!

too bad about the phals, though it does make sense. the onc. does look like a cross with an odontoglossum, which explains the pretty curving on the lower lip. and the other onc. absolutely looks like a sweet sugar - i think you're right on! thanks!

where do you get your orchids in the south bay?

WhiteRabbit · #5 05-10-2010, 08:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by deathofregret

oh yes, i could be in serious trouble with this place. my husband is already exasperated with my new obsession, but how could you not love these beautiful plants? i'm trying to bone up my knowledge on the cheap and easy orchids before i purchase anything more expensive - no desire to kill any plants here!

too bad about the phals, though it does make sense. the onc. does look like a cross with an odontoglossum, which explains the pretty curving on the lower lip. and the other onc. absolutely looks like a sweet sugar - i think you're right on! thanks!

where do you get your orchids in the south bay?

I have a number or orchids from Trader Joe's

also, a few from Orchard Supply Hardware - not sure if you have them in Fairfield ... And have got some at Summerwinds nursery. I also attended my first orchid shows last year! Shows are awesome orchid shopping

Have got some off ebay - there are a number of good sellers there, but plenty not so good too - so if you go that route it's good to ask on the board if people have experience with the seller. Oh and have got some at Costco too.

Trader Joe's frequently has tagged plants - but not always lol

deathofregret · #6 05-10-2010, 08:18 PM

the milt. was tagged, which was nice, but none of the phals i've purchased through trader joe's have been tagged. boo. there was a lovely little young lady slipper there a few weeks ago that i should have grabbed, but i didn't. the milt. looks super young, too - any advice for taking care of a baby? i think we have an orchard supply store around here, i'll have to check. great suggestion!

which shows did you attend? the orchid world can be a little difficult to break into, i'm discovering!

- h

WhiteRabbit · #7 05-10-2010, 08:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by deathofregret

the milt. was tagged, which was nice, but none of the phals i've purchased through trader joe's have been tagged. boo. there was a lovely little young lady slipper there a few weeks ago that i should have grabbed, but i didn't. the milt. looks super young, too - any advice for taking care of a baby? i think we have an orchard supply store around here, i'll have to check. great suggestion!

which shows did you attend? the orchid world can be a little difficult to break into, i'm discovering!

- h

Oh I have no objection to pretty untagged (noid = No I.D.) orchids - I have a number of them

different stores may have different suppliers, but being in nor-cal, they may have the same suppliers. I found that the OSH in downtown San Jose frequently had nice plants in 3" pots (they are priced by pot size, and 3" - $10 - so can be a good deal) but the store closer to me not so much - mostly bigger pots costing over $20. Also the store near me has the orchids outdoors - sheltered, but still the plants look worse for wear a lot. The downtown store has mmost of the orchids inside the store so they were in better shape.

I went to the Pacific Orchid Exposition in SF - I think it's the largest show on the west coast - I definitely recommend going! And a smaller show held in a mall.
There are probably some local orchid societies in your area holding shows - likely in a mall. I think I have something bookmarked that has some events - I have to look for it

I have the same milt, also quite small, but if it's bloom size it shouldn't require any special care - don't let it dry out completely, and moderately bright light. Mine get some morning sun.

johnblagg · #8 05-10-2010, 08:36 PM

Wow nice chids way to jump in for sure.

Phals are great noid or not ..lol all my phals are noids and I love them.

Welcome

Tindomul · #9 05-10-2010, 09:15 PM

Welcome to the Orchid Board. Glad you joined. I bet growing any kind of plant is good in your area. Lots of humidity, stable temperatures. ahhhhh.