Miltonia spectabilis (Project 9 Int. - Summer 2009)

[harrywitmore]

Mine is growing well but as cooler weather has moved in it has slowed. It has not spikes and the yellow color is getting greener. I just don't have the light Andy has I guess. I like this plant so much I found a Miltonia xbluntii that has flowered and it is cool and very long lasting. It's very yellow also.

[flhiker]

Harry,Now you went and did it! One more for the list. Excellent choice it's a must have.

[PitcherASAMD]

Harry! That Milt is gorgeous! Like Dave said, I too am adding that to my "Must have list"! Great job!

My milt is in spagh and I water it every 4 to 5 days and it's in a south facing window. It doesn't get direct sun until midday/afternoon as the window it's in is blocked by a portion of our apt building.

Anyone else with their growing conditions?

--Katie

[Zoi2]

I moved mine from an outside south porch to inside due to the cooler weather and it is still adjusting...I think. I have quite a few new growths, but no spikes or blooms. It is a bit greener than it was earlier this summer.
Joann

[RosieC]

Well while you guys who got them from Andy's have seen them get greener, mine (bought from a place in Germany) has got yellower. But then mine started very green so it could not really go the other way.

I have it in an almost south facing window (slightly south west) and over the summer I gave it some outside sunshine as well.

The window it's in is the brightest I have and will start getting the sun in early afternoon as it clears our neighbours house. Very little direct sunlight at this time of year as we are in cloud most of the time, but it got more earlier in the year.

Being mounted I water every day. Over the summer I was watering twice a day but I've dropped that back as the weather has cooled. I use fertiliser in the water once a week (ish).

[RosieC]

For my own records I've been taking pictures of the status of all my chids just now so I thought I would share the ones of my spectabilis.

It's still just growing with no sign of flowers, but it looks healthy and has root growth and new lead growths, while older lead growths are developing p-bulbs.

Most of it is growing upright on the mount, but when I got it there were two lead growths out on the left which are now showing the first signs of p-bulbs inside the leaves when I hold it up to the light. I've also watched as two other p-bulbs have gone from nothing to fully formed.



As it is mounted and I have to water it every day I have found that I am watching it's progress very closely.



I've also watched as masses of new roots have grown between the mount and the newer growths, some of which can be seen in the picture above.



Finally in the last picture you can see four new lead growths at various stages. One of them at the lower left of the picture is struggling to push through between two other parts of the rhyzome.

I have a suspicion that this is actually two plants though. There is a place on the rhyzome which looks suspiciously like the cut end of one has been pushed up close to the side of another before it was mounted. It/they look happy where they are though so I don't want to disturb them to find out for shaw. Of course if it IS two plants that means two smaller plants that might be less likely to flower.

But I don't really care. Still really enjoying this plant, my first species, my first mounted chid and my first in this alliance (although I've bought others since).

[Zoi2]

Rosie, what are the climate conditions you are growing yours in? I'm not doing very well with mine.
Joann

[RosieC]

Just now I have arround 40%-50% humidity. The temperature ranges from about 14C (57F) to arround 20C (68F). It is in a SW window but at this time of year light levels are quite low.

That is the winter conditions with central heating drying out the air, but not on enough to warm it to more than the 20C.

In the summer it was in the same window but got quite bright direct sunlight. The humidity was tending to be between 60% and 90% right up until we turned on the central heating. Summer temperatures were arround 20C (68F) to 27C (80F) at the very top. I also put it outside for 4 or 5 days in September. For at least some of that time it was in midday direct sunlight (but I had moved it slowly in to brighter light and was still terified it would burn). It turned yellower with the bright sun but not as yellow as some of those which came from Andy's and it had gone darker green again since.

It's mounted and I dunk the entire thing, mount and all, every day in the summer, every other day just now. It is also in our bathroom which does not get used every day (we tend to use the shower in the en-suit) but I like to relax in the bath with a good book every other week or so and the humidity gets really high just then.

[RosieC]

I should also say that growth was faster in the summer but while it has slowed down it is still growing.

[Zoi2]

Rosie, thank you for your info.
I'm providing close to your conditions--however, no bath buddy
Mine was not staying wet enough in the net pot I originally got it in so I transplanted to s/h. It is a bit greener now than it was this summer, I've got new growths but they really are not doing much. Maybe I just need to give it more time.
It is in a South window, but with winter, the light isn't all that bright and long. The temp in the room runs 55-68and the humidity 55-70%.
Joann