Project 2023 Spring Sarcochilus

[Blueszz]

Originally Posted by qbie

All mine also outdoors on a NNE facing balcony but with nothing to shade except building structure on the south and east sides. Temps here usually about 10 degrees warmer than SF.

Seen a couple of leaves yellow but seems it’s because there's new growth elsewhere, roots or new fan/leaf, so I think nutrients are just being recycled elsewhere. They definitely grow much slower than Phals.

Plain tap water daily since April. No fertilizer.

What is your reason not to fertilize?

I don’t think they are heavy feeders but I think they certainly will benefit from it. They need their “vitamins” to grow, just like we do.

IMHO, in the end you’ll notice deficiencies.

[WaterWitchin]

Following comments on this topic have been moved to their own thread (by me). It's become a good conversation, but too generic for this thread. It will also be more seen by beginners than a specific plant project thread. New thread can be found To Fertilize or Not? - Orchid Board - Most Complete Orchid Forum on the web !

Please feel free to continue on the new thread site. Meanwhile, back to the Sarco 2023 project...

[ArronOB]

Originally Posted by Roberta

Wow, they ARE confused.

Looking at them now, I don’t think they are going to bloom till spring anyway. They’ll just stay pretty much as-is till then. Three of the 6 now have them - little growths that don’t look like roots.

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by ArronOB

Looking at them now, I don’t think they are going to bloom till spring anyway. They’ll just stay pretty much as-is till then.

They are just teasing you...

[qbie]

Originally Posted by Roberta

When you say "San Francisco Bay area" that covers a huge range of microclimates, so you do need to be a bit more specific with regard to what you experience in terms of temperature ranges.

My apologies. You're absolutely correct. I'm more bayside and a little further south on the peninsula than the grower was but still experience a moderate influence of the marine layer. Summer highs are usually high 60s-70s. Nighttime lows drop back to 50s. Heat waves like today bring temps into the 80s. If it's an extended wave, the 90s. I don't recall it reaching triple digits here. I believe that's more inland.

[Roberta]

Heat certainly isn't a problem for you. Not being fertilized I expect has slowed them down considerably. In winter you can water somewhat less than in summer (not "dry", though)

[qbie]

I'm amazed how tough these little guys are. Here's a pic of two "babies" that must've broken off from the parent when unpotting. One was apparently buried in the potting medium and hadn't seen light to really make any chlorophyll yet. The other barely had stubs for roots after removing everything that was rotten.



10 months later. Both grew a new leaf this spring, and one is sprouting another leaf. All with no fertilizer! I'm amazed by their will to survive. Started fertilizing them this week, but think this will be many years a growing project for me til these bonsai-sized sarcos get anywhere close to blooming size.

[WaterWitchin]

Good save! I would have likely just dumped the medium and never noticed they were in there.

[qbie]

Originally Posted by WaterWitchin

Good save! I would have likely just dumped the medium and never noticed they were in there.

I think I only noticed because there had been signs of pests so I was trying my best to clean the parent well.

This was really just an experiment. I didn't think they would survive. The only other thing I've seen be able to grow from something that small is a succulent, or a weed. Anything else would have dried up and died.

[ArronOB]

I’m a bit late to the party again.

My 6 little sarcos that I purchased just before this members’ project are just starting to bloom. Note my location so seasons reversed. Only one bloomed last spring.

Im a little surprised they are doing well as I haven’t fertilised them ever (yeah, I know, hopeless, but just too busy doing other things) and the watering system nearby had clogged up without me noticing. They can be tough little things to survive my regime of neglect.

Some are growing in terracotta pots with lava rock and a little sphagnum, the others in plastic pots with bark. No visible difference.

I get the feeling that the results in terms of flowering with this project were a bit poor all round. Perhaps it reinforces one thing which is how much better orchids grow in their natural location or somewhere close to it.

Cheers