Corybas growing

[TOMMYMIAMI]

Ok, I did try Corybas last year, with not much luck, I made some tubers grow the tiny leaf, but most of the leaves did rot, one lasted for some 2+ months, but never bloomed. I did try in Starbucks cup with the lid, in glass jar, in vivarium. This year I got $1 Target tiny plastic greenhouse (sold as the kit with soil and seeds in $1 section), made some holes on the top, and put small cactus mix inside, Corybas tubers are just laying on the mix, last month they all started to sprout, and they are growing, looking happy! Inside are Corybas geminigibbus and Corybas calopeplos. Keeping my fingers crossed to see some blooms!

[801229001]

WOW! where did you get these!? I've been trying to locate some for a super long time with no success and ive got some deep feelers for rare species!

[TOMMYMIAMI]

Originally Posted by 801229001

WOW! where did you get these!? I've been trying to locate some for a super long time with no success and ive got some deep feelers for rare species!

eBay, last year and this year. They do show up very rarely, I was looking for some for quite some time before friend told me they are on eBay. Imports cost pretty much the same money, around $25-$30 per tuber, but to get stuff from Asia is always hassle, so I do prefer when they are in the US and shipped within the US :-)

[samarak]

I've wanted to try Corybas for a long time and just got a couple of these two species, so any advice you have would be much appreciated!

[TOMMYMIAMI]

Originally Posted by samarak

I've wanted to try Corybas for a long time and just got a couple of these two species, so any advice you have would be much appreciated!

Steve, pretty much what I've written here, they like very high humidity, when dormant, lightly moist and humid but not soggy, when they are dormant more air movement is necessary for the tubers not to rot, when they are in active growth, no much need for air movement (when blooming NO AIR movement or bloom will die fast). Many growers suggests these pine needles laid on the top of medium mix, I did try needles from Taxodium distichum (tree growing here in Florida) but it did not work well for me last year, where I think these were the cause of the leaf rotting due to them staying moist, some say these needles protect the leaf from rot and also mimic the "situ" conditions, these grow in the nature where needles and leaves are covering the ground. Very important think is to try not to get any water sitting on the leaves, so bottom watering is the best way, if you have them in small pots than let the pot soak in the water from the saucer. I do weak fertilizing only. This year I am trying this small greenhouse method and so far they seem very happy past month+ so we shall see.

[samarak]

Thanks, that's very helpful. I do like pine needle mulches on some of our outdoor beds but have never considered conifer detritus for orchid pots! (Bald cypress is planted widely here as an ornamental and occurs naturally farther south in the state, and we have a large dawn redwood, Metasequoia glyptostroboides, in our yard, so I have access to a very similar material. But I'm not surprised to hear it didn't work well.) I am using quite small clay pots instead of my normal plastic in hopes it will help keep the medium at the right moisture level while they're dormant.