any Ludisia growers out there ?

[gngrhill]

Hi all, I bought a Ludisia Discolor last year in bloom. I have tried growing it in the mix it came in which seemed to be a peat mix. It did not seem to be doing very well, so I repotted it into a fine bark and terrestrial orchid mix, it still didn't seem to be doing very well. I thought maybe I was keeping it too moist (culture sheet said to keep it moist ) so I repotted once again into a fine bark only. Still not doing well, not growing and the leaves have become curly. I have tried different levels of light and temps are in the intermediate range. Humidity is in the 50 to 60 percent range. Any ideas ??

[RenéeS]

Hi gngrhill

Looks like you tried many different things. I do not know the best growing conditions of this plant - maybe others can pitch in - but I have grown this plant for over 8 years and have been succesfull, so I hope I can help! It blooms every year. The plant likes to be moist but can also be prone to rot if kept too moist, and a mix that is too fine tends to stay too moist. I found that it likes some air in the roots, so I keep mine in a mix of fine and medium bark, mixed with sphagnum moss. When I bought it, it was in normal soil. Inexperienced as I was, I found out that almost all roots had rotten when it was almost too late . Regarding water-regime, I soak it every 7-10 days like my other plants but I spray the soil every 2 days with rainwater. It's in a very shady spot, 2 meters from a north facing window. So it doesn't get much light.

It doesn't grow that fast for me in this spot, but looks very, very healthy. Right now it has 8 spikes..I did find out that the cuttlings I keep in my small warm terrarium with other jewel orchids grow like weeds. It's very warm and humid there, whilst the living room is not. It tends to be a bit cold here. My conclusion: it likes warmth better .

Good luck with your plant!

[Leafmite]

I grow Ludisia in a basket pot filled with styrofoam peanuts and NZ sphagnum moss. I set the entire thing into a clear, plastic cylinder for more humidity and try to keep it moist. It is under my grow lights for the winter and went outside for the summer (I have had it about eighteen months). Temperatures are warm during the day but cooler at night. It seems very happy in these circumstances.

[disalover]

I grow my ludisia in a mix of 1\3 bark, 1/3 potting soil and a 1/3 silica sand. I keep it in bright shade and give it water once a week. When I bought it in July this year it only had 3 leaves and only produced one leaf at a time but now it is giving me 2-3 leaves. Here in SA the temps can range from 7°C in winter to 40°C in summer. My humidity can sometimes get as low as 40%. What tipe do you have? When i repotted mine i found very little roots, because it came from a cutting of a large plant it was stilI formimg roots. I find them very easy. Hope your plant gets better soon!!

[Paul]

Ludisia often get that "leggy" look. Keep in mind that in the wild they would be rambling along in the leaf litter on a forest floor.

Part of your issue at this time might actually be due to trying too many different media in such a short span of time. Orchids may take a long time (to us, at any rate) to adjust to new conditions. If conditions keep changing rapidly, a plant may struggle to just keep up. Keep in mind that it likely went through a major change going from the original grower's environment to yours. Depending up on just how drastic that change was, that alone may have been quite a shock to the plant's system. And since it was blooming at that time, it was directing its energies into the blooms -- not into adapting to your environment. Since that time, you have exposed it to at least 3 more environmental (in this case media) changes. If you also have been changing its location in your home, that is yet another set of new factors being tossed at it.

Your humidity is just fine.

As others have mentioned, they do like a media that is moist but not wet for great lengths of time. Once established, they can even handle the media getting quite dry between waterings. I find they are quite adaptable to different media. I have used peat:hydroton:medium grade horticultural charcoal, straight sphag, and mixes involving potting soil with amendments such as perlite/bark/charcoal, et cetera. Different media can require different watering regimens so one must experiment to see what works best for you in your conditions. However, no matter what you try, you have to keep in mind that some orchids may take months to get growing again. Others seem not to even miss a beat. If changes keep occurring, this can pose setbacks in that adjustment period.

[gngrhill]

thanks all. Maybe I'll try finding some way to add to the humidity and then just leave it alone and see if it will adjust.