Oncidium Outdoor Care

[NYCorchidman]

This is oncidium wildcat. I can't tell exactly what variety but it is wildcat.

Any oncidium when placed in direct sun will be cooked like how yours look in the photo.
I would move the plant away from the sun or add shade to protect it from getting burned.

The leaves actually look fine to me.
Many oncidums have droopy leaves and that is natural. I think all my oncidiums and intergenerics except for two minis have droopy leaves of varying degree but mostly very droopy. Usually big plant with long leaves like wildcat have leaves that arch over.

[WhiteRabbit]

Originally Posted by NYCorchidman

This is oncidium wildcat. I can't tell exactly what variety but it is wildcat.

Any oncidium when placed in direct sun will be cooked like how yours look in the photo.
I would move the plant away from the sun or add shade to protect it from getting burned.

The leaves actually look fine to me.
Many oncidums have droopy leaves and that is natural. I think all my oncidiums and intergenerics except for two minis have droopy leaves of varying degree but mostly very droopy. Usually big plant with long leaves like wildcat have leaves that arch over.

But what is your definition of "direct sun"? All off mine take - by my definition of. -"direct sun": sun hitting the plant; no dappling, in morning or afternoon. No noon or near-noon sun.

[NYCorchidman]

Direct sun is literally sun exposure without any shading.
Morning and late afternoon sun is usually fine for almost any orchid genera.
In the summer, the heat is just too much depending on where you live, so shading sun light keeps plants from being cooked, and sometimes cooked to death. lol

Almost all my plants are getting sun through window glass with some sheer curtain. Some are right up against the window and some are quite a bit away from it.

A few of my orchds get direct light about half day and do fine with slight sign of heat stress.
I just had to remove a mini catt (Tropical Pointer) away because all the leaves are cooked in some degree. I should have moved last week but at least it is still alive. hehehe

I guess the little guy cannot take strong light as much as the larger cattleyas.

My policy is giving as much light as possible without burning the leaves.
So let the leaves or pbs be your guide. If they do not get damaged by the heat, they are fine and will bloom the best to their potential under such bright condition.

[theanalyst]

The leaves definitely got a bit too much direct sun. My yard is tricky, because there aren't many places that have bright light without direct sunlight. I have many trees in the front, so much of the yard isn't bright enough for orchids. My backyard is full sun, so that doesn't work either. I will see how it does under my overhang. I'm hoping it is bright enough, without direct sun.

[flexdc]

Sometimes shade under tree in the summer is enough light for. Most orchids. Summer sun is much stronger and even reflected light is brighter

[NYCorchidman]

He's right.
A lot of the time, the light instruction is for indoor growers I think.

When outdoor, light intensity increases like crazy.
Even under tree shade, unless it is really really deep dark shade, oncidiums are perfectly fine there.

[james mickelso]

Too high a light level. The drooping and the faded color are all indications of high light. The spotting is also caused by too much light as the plant is stressed and can't fight off the fungus that is always around. And probably some small scale cell damage. What is it planted in and has it been kept too wet? Oncids don't like to be wet. They like to be watered and then dry out quickly. I grow mine in both lava rock and bark mixes. I can water more often but keep it dry. I get big fat pbulbs and grass green leaves. Of all the normally available orchids we buy, oncids are the most sensitive to over watering. The root system is very fine but abundant. That makes the root system stay wet under the root mass but dry around the edges. So get this under some dense foliage to lower the light level and if in too dense a media repot it before it gets too far gone.