tiny friends about to arrive, now what?!?!?!

[josh91793]

I just recently received two small plants. Cadetia taylori and a bulbophyl moniflorme (forgive me if i spelled that name wrong). i don't know what i should do with them as far as care. not from the standpoint of watering and all, although if anyone has any info please feel free to post some info. I just don't know what kind of habitat to put them in. I am thinking about getting a little 2 gallon glass fishtank and putting the plants in it so they can have adequate humidity. The only problem is that i don't have a fan for air circulation. Does anyone have any pointers on how i could circulate the air? also, should i even be looking into a fishtank or should i just let the plants be in the room with all my other orchids. I live in virginia if that helps anyone with my conditions. Hope i can get some info from all you experienced mini orchid growers out there!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Don't know anything about Cadetia.

But I do know Bulb. monilliforme.

This miniature Bulbophyllum is not the easiest Bulbo to grow.

It grows slow, and is not terribly prolific with it's new growths.

This likes moderate to high humidity (60% - 80% is sufficient).

Moderate air circulation.

Bright shade.

However...

This plant must be mounted. The mount should not have any moss on it whatsoever!

It goes deciduous in late fall.

Dormancy is when it goes deciduous. But dormancy does not mean keep it bone dry. Mist it every week or every week-and-a-half.

Growing season is during late spring.

During growing season, expect to be watering anywhere from everyday to once every two days. Don't be surprised if you have to water twice a day!

You must observe this plant carefully! I recommend buying a jeweler's loupe of no less than 30x magnification.

The roots are about 0.5 mm in diameter and only 2 - 3 mm long on average. They're easy to miss if you don't have a jeweler's loupe.

I've never bloomed these because I only have small remnants of the previous colony.

They die easily due to rot.

I don't recommend making small divisions of this plant, btw. You might regret that move.

Water with distilled, RO/DI, or rainwater only. Water high in dissolved minerals will surely kill this little guy off.

If you choose to not take this plant on, I'll gladly buy them off of you.

[josh91793]

out of curiosity, why would i have to observe this plant carefully?

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

You want to observe it carefully for root damage.

It can only be done with a jeweler's loupe.

Like I said, they're tiny.

Root damage = dead Bulb monilliforme

It allows you to also catch signs of pseudobulb rot early and easily.

I just checked on mine right as we speak. And yes, with a 30x jeweler's loupe.

BTW, the pseudobulbs are only 3 mm in diameter at the largest 4 mm no bigger.

[josh91793]

and how would you water these little guys. when you say water do you mean mist or actually water? i'm kinda new to these little guys. any help is welcome!

[harrywitmore]

The Cadetia is an easy one to grow. It needs bright light and best results are achieved mounted I think. It should be watered when it is almost dry. It should not dry completely out. Frequency of watering will be determined by humidity. I grow mine in the greenhouse in 60-80% humidity.

[peeweelovesbooks]

I have a cadetia taylori that is almost constantly in bloom.


I purchased it in 2008 and it's doubled in size since that time. I have it in an ERIN pot in my office at work, and I water it approximately 2 times per week. The pot is shallow though. The blooms smell like vanilla.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

In case you missed when I edited my original post.

Bulb. monilliforme should not be watered with tap water.

You can water using a spray bottle or run water over it underneath the water outlet for the water filtration unit.

I forgot, don't over fertilize these. 1/4 to 1/2 strength fertilizer is enough.

[josh91793]

What fertilizer would be good to fertilize the cadetia and the bulbo. moni.?

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Urea free fertilizer.

N-P-K something around 20-20-20, doesn't have to be precisely 20-20-20. If you get close to it it's fine.

Doesn't really matter what brand.