Schoenorchis fragrans blooms

[Pattywack]

Camille, congratulations on the new job! Definitely a cause for celebration and a new orchid or two is perfect along with a nice wine.

This Saturday I am going to the National Capital Orchid show with my daughter and I’m pretty excited. There are never any Neo vendors there though last year I found a nice Neo on the members table!

J&L will be there so I hope to see Cordelia again, find a nice miniature or two. It’s like visiting with an old friend, she is so sweet.

Your new Schoenorchis fragrans is a cutie! Aren’t they tiny! I remember unwrapping mine and being amazed at the size, such perfection in a small package and the blooms are amazing.

I keep my fragrans in a east facing bay kitchen window, it gets pretty red at times with sunny mornings. I turn the vase to the window until afternoon then I turn the vase towards the kitchen as I have a table top terrarium directly under that window. The light for the terrarium gives the fragrans some light throughout the day. Temps are normal room temps, mid 70s plus the heat up from morning sun. I keep the vase turned towards the kitchen until early mornings as that window faces our deck and there is a light right outside the window, little guy need it’s nightly rest and dark.

I spray the fragrans once or twice a week, only the roots and mount never on the leaves. I’ve seen many posts of fragrans in terrariums kept too wet and misted enough that the plant rotted. My plant has never lost a leaf, it’s been very healthy and strong. It hangs from the lip of the vase (Andy’s mount) and there is about an inch of space below the mount. I have 3 or 4 stones in the bottom and keep water in there. The mount never touches the water. There are a couple of roots that have grown to the bottom of the mount and I certainly don’t want it to stay wet!

The lid is not a tight fit as the wire from the mount prevents a snug fit. I put the lid on overnight and leave it on until it steams up in the morning then I remove it. Usually it only takes a couple of hours to get steamy in the small vase. I don’t want to cook it so the lid comes off and it clears up fairly soon. There is not exactly circulation inside the vase, its very small but this has never been a problem. Maybe because I don’t wet the plant itself.

Anywho, enjoy your fragrans! I’m sure it will thrive in your care and no doubt flower each year. If it should take on a red coloring from high light, it will return to the normal green as soon as you move it to a bit less light. I’ve not ever burned my plant.

Congratulations again on both plant and new job!

[camille1585]

Thanks for the detailed information! I only have south and west windows, so will have to figure out a bright position for it with not too much direct sun. I guess I'll let leaf color guide me! Your plant is just amazing, if I can grow it half as well I'll be super happy.

So far I love my new job, and it's a welcome change from the previous one which left me stressed and miserable with a horrendous commute. I now work in an R&D position in a company that develops vertical/urban farming 'growing recipes' for various horti or agri crops. I get to do plant related stuff all day, and am learning tons more about how light and environment affect plant physiology

Have fun at the orchid show, I curious to see what you'll bring home! I'm also going to one on saturday, it's the annual show of the Dutch orchid society. I may have to quickly pre-order a Neo, I just saw that one of the Dutch Neo suppliers will be there!

[Pattywack]

Your windows will probably be fine, maybe pull the plant back a bit from the window? Mine sits right in the windowsill. It has a faint red tint at the leaf edges currently, we’ve had a lot of cloudy days and more rain than necessary lol. The fragrans is a no fuss orchid in my opinion, I’ve never had issues. It holds its older leaves well, they turn red and or yellow then almost brown but they never fal off. My plant has 18 leaves with a new one coming along. It really is a favorite of mine. Wish I had more, maybe someday I’ll follow up on that wish.

Sounds like the job change is a win win! Always good to have a change for the better and your job sounds really interesting. Nice to not have a long commute, my husband has been working from home for several years and doesn’t miss his old commute at all. He does travel quite often still. Traffic here has only gotten worse since we moved here almost 20 years ago, volume! East coast is not like the Midwest. Do you ever get back to VA?

Hopefully you will find some nice Neos at the show, I know I’ll find something. As soon as Cordelia (J&L) sees me she grabs a big box and says now let’s fill it up! She’s a hoot!

Here are a few pictures of fragrans today. I let the old spikes fall off on their own as I’m afraid to get near it with snippers!

[camille1585]

My plant has a new home, I found a small mason jar that I hope will work well. I can copy your culture by putting the lid on the jar every night. I've positioned it on the shelves so it will get a few hours of sun just before sunset.

Thanks for sharing more photos of your plant! Me too I'd be scared of using scissors on those dried spikes... I'm amazed by how fat the roots are in comparison to the plant!

What did you pick up at the show? Was the box Cordelia handed you large enough? I got a nice Neo and 2 Phals.

And no, I rarely go back to VA, mainly because I rarely go back to the US, and I tend to go back to Connecticut when I do. My best childhood memories are there, and my childhood best friend. I sadly don't have very many ties to the country anymore.

[Pattywack]

Originally Posted by camille1585

My plant has a new home, I found a small mason jar that I hope will work well. I can copy your culture by putting the lid on the jar every night. I've positioned it on the shelves so it will get a few hours of sun just before sunset.

Thanks for sharing more photos of your plant! Me too I'd be scared of using scissors on those dried spikes... I'm amazed by how fat the roots are in comparison to the plant!

What did you pick up at the show? Was the box Cordelia handed you large enough? I got a nice Neo and 2 Phals.


And no, I rarely go back to VA, mainly because I rarely go back to the US, and I tend to go back to Connecticut when I do. My best childhood memories are there, and my childhood best friend. I sadly don't have very many ties to the country anymore.

Your plant looks great in its new home! I would be sure the lid is not completely closing the top, at least my plant has a bit of a gap at the wire hook. I do remove the plant occasionally and clean the vase out as it gets algae on the glass and stones and generally looks nasty.

The old spikes tend to fall away between flowering seasons or I bump them while watering but I’m too afraid to take scissors to it! And I agree, the roots are really fat for such a little plant.

The show was nice and the weather was cooler on Saturday so it was more enjoyable in the greenhouse. Cordelia had a nice big box ready for us and we were very conservative this year. I picked up a Masdevallia nidifica that I hope to grow again. I had one in my early days of growing orchids and lost it. They have beautiful flowers and generally take warmer temps. I also added two, yep two Macroclinium aurorae to my collection. These are just amazing so I got a mounted one and a potted one. I have one from last years show and it is just clinging to life sadly. Cordelia said her plant from last year did the same as mine and explained the vendor she got them from had collected them in Peru. Those collected plants were weak and most did not live so the vendor grew these newer plants from seed and they have been stronger and definitely more vigorous. I’m giving this another try, love them! I checked the members table first thing, found Neos there last year. I grabbed, quickly, a Shunkyuden! So surprised to find one. It is a small plant, two fans but it has one open bloom and two buds! Very excited! The other Neos were nice plants but nothing I didn’t already have. Probably for the best. There are no other Neo vendors at this show. I’ll make a post bragging about my Shunkyuden.

I understand about not making it back to the states, we rarely make it back to Mo ourselves. Good luck with the fragrans, it’s a awesome orchid and so easy! Glad you enjoyed your orchid show!