Habenaria medusa and others

[SaraJean]

Habenaria medusa. Broke dormancy super early before I even got a chance to unpot it from last year, and now it’s starting to bloom with 13 flowers on this one spike. Stunning, stunning, stunning. It’s nearly impossible to take a bad picture of this one. Kept it warm, kept it bright, and kept it damp while it’s been growing






Vandafinetia Virgil x Vanda cristata. My first time blooming, instead of killing, a Vanda!! This is cute, tiny and vigorous. It’s a first bloom seedling that is sending out 3 spikes. I’m growing it in a very shallow clay pot with a bit of tree fern fiber.




Dendrobium farmeri. Love the soft blush color and light fragrance. I give this one a cool rest and grow it a bit brighter in the winter and it rewards me every March through April. Short lived flowers but not all of the spikes bloom at once.






The always reliable Dendrobium aphyllum. I basically ignore this one and leave it outdoors year round. Definitely one of my sturdiest orchids.



Schoenorchis tixieri. Not in bloom but LOOK AT THAT TINY SPIKE! Super cute. I’ve been keeping this high up in the greenhouse, warm and very bright light.




Psychopsis Mendenhall 'Hildos' fcc/aos. I was pretty bummed when I snapped off three of the five spikes. They all regrew though from right below where I broke them. Here is the first bloom on an ‘accessory’ spike. I still haven’t quite figured out what makes these guys tick. I’ve been keeping it fairly damp, watering before it drys completely, and moderately bright.




This is a new one to me. A gorgeous Laelia anceps (a bit crunched from the box but absolutely beautiful). I was planning on leaving this outdoors year round but I am unsure of the winter care in regards to water. Any culture tips would be appreciated! There are 5 growths points starting to swell and new roots in the bloom pbulbs are popping out.

[orchidsarefun]

It's hard to believe your Medusa is in full bloom! Mine are about an inch tall and I also thought they were early.

[Subrosa]

Originally Posted by orchidsarefun

It's hard to believe your Medusa is in full bloom! Mine are about an inch tall and I also thought they were early.

Mine is not even an inch yet, and it broke dormancy much earlier than last year.

[SaraJean]

Originally Posted by orchidsarefun

It's hard to believe your Medusa is in full bloom!

Same. I just got a carnea that is still dormant but worrying me less than this one. I noticed the medusa growing in early October before the old stem had completely died away. At this point, I’m concerned that it’s going to go into dormancy after the blooms fall off in late spring/early summer, before developing any strong tubers. I feel like I need to find a replacement now just in case

[Paul]

Originally Posted by orchidsarefun

It's hard to believe your Medusa is in full bloom! Mine are about an inch tall and I also thought they were early.

My H. carnosa has bloomed for the past couple winters instead of during the spring/summer as it should. Orchids will be orchids.

[fishmom]

Beautiful medusa, and that Den. farmerii! The center looks like an egg yolk! Fabulous!

[Roberta]

Wow, my Hab medusa has growths that are about 1/2 inch. But I had 6 of them, , just spotted yet another growth peeking out. So it should be spectacular when they finally get to blooming. But what a treat to have one out of season!
As for L. anceps, mine just grow high above the Cymbidiums to they get the best light in the yard. They are all either mounted or in baskets with little media. So they get watered with everything else, rained upon if it happens to rain, but dry fast, lows in the mid -30's F or occasionally a little lower for a few hours. Summer, up to triple digits. F. So no pampering or special treatment for these, I think it's just about the toughest orchid around, being quite happy with whatever it gets. The only critical treatment is the rapid drying. When I have had them in pots, they didn't do much until they hit the edge of the pot, then popped roots and new growth all over the place. Tells me they hate pots.

[billc]

They are all beautiful. I really need to get Habenaria medusa. Every time some one posts a pic of theirs blooming I can't stop looking at it.

Bill

[SaraJean]

Originally Posted by billc

They are all beautiful. I really need to get Habenaria medusa. Every time some one posts a pic of theirs blooming I can't stop looking at it.

Bill

and I can’t stop taking pictures of it, lol. Definitely my new favorite. What I found interesting was that as it starts to open, the lip is pristine white. Initially I thought I must have kept it too bright and too warm while in spike, which bleached out the crimson inner lip. But about 12 hours later hours from this stage, the crimson color rushes in and gives that striking contrast. I really wasn’t expecting that. I just hope it’s able to develop some good tubers with this out of season blooming

Originally Posted by fishmom

Beautiful medusa, and that Den. farmerii! The center looks like an egg yolk! Fabulous!

Thank you! And I thought the exact same thing with the Den, it’s a dead ringer for a farm raised yeh yolk. It really makes the flower pop

Originally Posted by Roberta

As for L. anceps, mine just grow high above the Cymbidiums to they get the best light in the yard. They are all either mounted or in baskets with little media. So they get watered with everything else, rained upon if it happens to rain, but dry fast, lows in the mid -30's F or occasionally a little lower for a few hours. Summer, up to triple digits. F. So no pampering or special treatment for these, I think it's just about the toughest orchid around, being quite happy with whatever it gets. The only critical treatment is the rapid drying. When I have had them in pots, they didn't do much until they hit the edge of the pot, then popped roots and new growth all over the place. Tells me they hate pots.

That sounds perfect. With the roots just barely getting started, I’m thinking about throwing it on a mount that I can just keeping it on my balcony. I am assuming I would have to protect it from the rain in the low 40’s- high 30’s. Have you noticed that to be the case? Does it like a little less water in the winter?

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by SaraJean

That sounds perfect. With the roots just barely getting started, I’m thinking about throwing it on a mount that I can just keeping it on my balcony. I am assuming I would have to protect it from the rain in the low 40’s- high 30’s. Have you noticed that to be the case? Does it like a little less water in the winter?

L. anceps? Mine don't get protected at all, and those temperatures don't faze them. I reduce all watering in winter because things don't dry out as fast when it is cold and damp... I water with the same goal as any other time, seeking to let the plants dry out a bit between waterings - it just happens faster in summer so I water more often. I would suggest mounting or basket with perhaps a bit of large bark. Then you get the rapid drying that it wants with no particular effort... My Cyms need more water than the L anceps and they get watered by the same sprinklers. But with the same amount and frequency of watering, the Cyms stay damp and the L anceps dry out. (That's generally what I do... I figure I can make the water-don't water decision every day for every plant, or I can make the decision every 2-3 years when I repot, adjust the medium to the needs of the plant, and water everybody the same. The latter is a lot easier with about 1700 plants.)