Huntleya wallisii in bloom

[lotis146]

That's beautiful! Your plant does appear a bit more healthy than mine even if you've neglected it. I've lost some leaves as well and I'm a little sketchy about what's happening with it. Well you'll see when I post the pic. That said the newer growth has grown 2-3 leaves since I've had it and some roots. It does look like yours is a deeper red as I tried to get accurate colors in my previous pic. How are you caring for yours?

I'm not sure how long mine was in flower before I got it in March but the flower didn't last long once it was in my home. Maybe it was old and/or shocked by the drastic change from California to Michigan. I'm pretty excited though about these new growths but also nervous b/c it seems with a lot of my plants several growths will start but then only one or two of them (two if there's multiples) will grow at that time.

I didn't really notice a scent last time but smelled it today (this afternoon) and I do believe there's something sweet about it.

[Orchid Whisperer]

Huntleya is a genus that is on my 'wish list', waiting for the day that I have the space and time to manage a proper greenhouse. I love the waxy brown and red flowers.

[lotis146]

Here's some pics as promised of my newest bloom and a couple of new growths I discovered.

[Kevinator]

As long as new growths are popping up, i think it should be fine. I went to Andy's nursery recently for a second time and found where he grows his Huntleyas. His hothouse (for warm growers) is split into three layers (a bench and two rows of hanging pipes). They are hung right above the benches below the top layer so i'm thinking moderate light. He says they're prone to leaf spotting and the old growths will lose their leaves sooner or later. I am currently following what he has told me: moderate air movement, slight moisture, and good quality water. Keep them sopping wet and they will rot away. Keep them dry and they will drop their leaves.

Oh and also, if by some chance you decide to pass by his nursery, the plant selection there dwarfs his online catalog. I could find practically anything there!

[lotis146]

Originally Posted by Kevinator

As long as new growths are popping up, i think it should be fine. I went to Andy's nursery recently for a second time and found where he grows his Huntleyas. His hothouse (for warm growers) is split into three layers (a bench and two rows of hanging pipes). They are hung right above the benches below the top layer so i'm thinking moderate light. He says they're prone to leaf spotting and the old growths will lose their leaves sooner or later. I am currently following what he has told me: moderate air movement, slight moisture, and good quality water. Keep them sopping wet and they will rot away. Keep them dry and they will drop their leaves.

Oh and also, if by some chance you decide to pass by his nursery, the plant selection there dwarfs his online catalog. I could find practically anything there!

Thank you very much for that information. It seems strange to me that mine is losing leaves already, with all the rain we've had I can't imagine it's a water issue! But at the same time I know losing leaves on older growths is kind of the name of the game for all orchids it seems and some aren't always so 'old' when they do it. Your reassurances help.

It's funny really b/c all is well now but when I think about the other half of the year - late fall, winter & early spring - I get a little nervous. Right now watering is so easy, never mind the rain doing it for me, all I have to do is get my hose and spray away! But this is where moss is my friend b/c it holds water longer.

I would love to visit his greenhouse but I'm over in Michigan so there won't be any 'stopping by'. Now should I ever find myself over that way you betcha I'll make a point to visit. I'm keeping an eye on my Pallida as it seems to be making a recovery and I found a growth that could be a young spike though I was kind of poking around under dead leaf bracts so it may not be 'active' if you know what I mean. Either way I've yet to know what its flower looks like. Do you have other Huntleyas Kevinator?

[wintergirl]

I wish I could visit Andy's too. I saw a YouTube video of his greenhouses and they are an absolute jungle of orchid's, sooo cool!

[Kevinator]

I don't actually have any other Huntleyas although I am planning to pick up a citrina when I revisit the nursery. Heck i may even be volunteering there soon! I do, however, have two Pescatoreas which are closely related to Huntleyas and both seem to exhibit the leaf drop behavior when dry. I've noticed that the bottom leaves of the growths go first so from your pictures i don't think dryness is an issue here.

btw how is your pallida doing?

[lotis146]

That would be so cool to volunteer at a greenhouse, especially Andy's! Pescatoreas eh? How are they to grow?

Thanks for that info. My Pallida seems to be doing alright. There's no more of the weird browning on the leaves and the older, afflicted growth is growing new roots while the second one is growing a new leaf so I think it's going to be okay. Thanks for asking.

[Kevinator]

Pescatoreas grow very similarly to Huntleyas. Although I've heard that they're easier to grow, I haven't seen any difference in their fussiness as of now. My lehmannii is doing well but my dayana is slowly growing and doesn't look too good. The main difference on how I grow these is that the Huntleya is in a basket with moss while the Pescatoreas are in bark in pots right underneath it, which means lower light. I've heard in brighter light they will flower more often. Andy said that he saw a P. lehmannii once with flowers encompassing the entire base of the plant growing in a little bit less than cattleya light.

Do you have any pictures of H. pallida and/or its flowers? I'm very curious since i can't find that species anywhere on the internet.

[lotis146]

Originally Posted by Kevinator

Pescatoreas grow very similarly to Huntleyas. Although I've heard that they're easier to grow, I haven't seen any difference in their fussiness as of now. My lehmannii is doing well but my dayana is slowly growing and doesn't look too good. The main difference on how I grow these is that the Huntleya is in a basket with moss while the Pescatoreas are in bark in pots right underneath it, which means lower light. I've heard in brighter light they will flower more often. Andy said that he saw a P. lehmannii once with flowers encompassing the entire base of the plant growing in a little bit less than cattleya light.

Do you have any pictures of H. pallida and/or its flowers? I'm very curious since i can't find that species anywhere on the internet.

That had to be an amazing sight. I've not seen any Pescatoreas in person but the pictures I've seen show really beautiful flowers. Good luck with them, I hope they do well and look forward to seeing pics!

I've got a thread I started under this alliance about Pallida having possible brown rot & I recently took some pics of the plant - which looks just like wallisii - but I don't have any of the flower since I got it this spring when I got wallisii. Really I took a chance getting it as I have no idea what the flowers look like either! Andy told me that he's calling it Pallida (not sure whether this is a species name so maybe I should be spelling lower case...) b/c right now there's a lot of confusion surrounding it in terms of what to call it. There was - not remembering at this moment - another plant, not a Huntleya, in the Zygo alliance that I thought maybe was it as I was searching for pics too I came across some literature relating the two. But Andy said it was not the case.

So when it blooms that'll be a first look for me as well I will certainly share pics.