Psychopsis Mariposa

[Akhenaten]

Yes, I use pure LECA, 10 mm diameter. It's very very well-draining media.

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by Akhenaten

Yes, I use pure LECA, 10 mm diameter. It's very very well-draining media.

Being inorganic, it also doesn't break down. For a long time I used diatomite, also inorganic, but then my supplier went out of business and I started using a mix of fairly large bark with perlite or pumice (about 50-50) I think I got better growth with the bark-inorganic mix than with pure inorganic. I just looked up my records on my Pyp. papilio (my oldest plant of the genus) and found that I have repotted it only 4 times since I got it in 1996 ... So the fast draining that keeps wetness from building up in the pot even with frequent watering (I do like to water) has, I think, had some benefit to keep roots happy. The plant has forgiven many beginner mistakes in the early years.

[Bcarpenter]

Ok great thanks , I will keep moist and water.
Although I like the idea of Leica it's appearance bothers me. I would like to water only once a week or so at the most. I like that idea of putting Leica in the bottom third of container and the rest bark on top and have the container standing in a pool of water.

[Chakora]

I have a mariposa. I got it 4-5 months ago. It had a bloom when I bought it. It was extremely packed in sphagnum moss and very wet. I unpotted it and found most of the roots were very squishy and rotting. I have it repotted in well draining bark and sponge rock media now. The bloom dried up and fell off over a month ago. I've read that it keeps blooming one after another on the same spike. How long should it take for the next one to bloom though? I'm still waiting to see another gorgeous flower.

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by Chakora

I have a mariposa. I got it 4-5 months ago. It had a bloom when I bought it. It was extremely packed in sphagnum moss and very wet. I unpotted it and found most of the roots were very squishy and rotting. I have it repotted in well draining bark and sponge rock media now. The bloom dried up and fell off over a month ago. I've read that it keeps blooming one after another on the same spike. How long should it take for the next one to bloom though? I'm still waiting to see another gorgeous flower.

If the plant and spike are healthy, I have found that it is 6-8 weeks from one bloom to the next. If the plant needs to recover from that "bad root" episode, it could take longer. (Plants of this genus don't like their roots disturbed, so if they have to recover from a bad situation, it may be slow.) Be patient... once these get going, they can bloom regularly for years... And once there are more spikes, they can be spectacular, indeed. So well worth the wait while the plant recovers.