Here is the culture sheet from OrchidWiz - a good place to start. I grow Lycaste (but not this particular one). I grow them in a heated sun room which in the winter has nighttime temps down to 56 F. When outside int he summer and we have temps above 90F (day) or 70F (night), I bring them into the Air Conditioned house.
LIGHT: 2000-3000 fc. Light should be filtered or diffused, and plants should not be exposed to direct midday sun. Strong air movement should be provided at all times.
TEMPERATURES: Summer days average 75-76F (24-26C), and nights average 57-59F (14-15C), with a diurnal range of 17-19F (10-11C). These plants should thrive if placed in the cool, moist air near the outlet of an evaporative cooler.
HUMIDITY: 80-85% year-round. Humidity in some parts of the habitat is not as high as that recorded at Cobán, especially in areas with a dry season in winter. WATER: Rainfall at Cobán is very heavy all year, but winter conditions in the habitat may be somewhat drier in than is indicated by the averages at the weather station. Cultivated plants should be watered heavily while actively growing, but drainage must be excellent, allowing their roots to dry fairly rapidly after watering. Water should be reduced somewhat in late autumn after new growths mature, but they should never dry out completely.
FERTILIZER: 1/4-1/2 recommended strength, applied weekly when plants are actively growing. Many growers prefer to use a balanced fertilizer throughout the year; but others use a high-nitrogen fertilizer from spring to midsummer and then switch to one high in phosphates in late summer and autumn.
REST PERIOD: Winter days average 71-73F (22-23C), and nights average 50-51F (10-11C), with a diurnal range of 20-23F (11-13C). Winter rainfall in the habitat may be a little less that the averages shown in the preceding climate table, but because additional moisture is available from heavy dew and mist, conditions in the habitat are probably never completely dry. Cultivated plants need less water in winter, but they should never dry out completely or be without water for long periods. Fertilizer should be reduced or eliminated until new growth starts and heavier watering is resumed in spring.
GROWING MEDIA: Plants usually are grown in pots or baskets filled with an open, fast draining medium that retains moisture without becoming stale or soggy. Growers recommend undersized, rather shallow containers with room for only 1-2 year's growth are best because the medium in larger pots stays wet for too long after watering so the roots cannot dry fast enough and easily develop root rot. Hawkes (1965) reported that most Lycaste species grow best when potted in straight shredded tree-fern fiber. More recently, however, some growers use fine-grade fir bark mixed with perlite and charcoal, while others prefer a mixture of equal volumes of shredded or chopped sphagnum, sedge peat, and perlite. These plants may also be grown mounted on tree-fern or cork slabs, but humidity must be high and plants need at least daily watering during the growing season. Mounted plants may need several waterings a day during extremely hot, dry weather. Providing enough summer moisture for mounted plants is difficult for some growers, so plants are usually are grown in pots or baskets. Repotting or dividing should be done before the medium breaks down or when the plant starts to overgrow its container. In most instances, this occurs about every 2 years. Plants should be repotted after a new growth starts and roots are starting to grow. This is when the plant is best able to become reestablished in the shortest possible time with the least amount of stress.
|
Linear Mode
