What is this on my Pleur. niveoglobula?

[dlewan]

Here's a picture of a new growth that has recently appeared on my Pleurothalils niveoglobula. It seems like it grew to this size in about a day, and nothing noticeable has happened since then.

What is it? (I'm guessing a stolon, but I don't know the genus well enough to feel confident.) What should I do with it?

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by dlewan

What is it? (I'm guessing a stolon, but I don't know the genus well enough to feel confident.) What should I do with it?

I don't know the species, but for the genus in general, I'd think "new growth". I think just sit back and watch, and let the plant tell you when it's ready.

[dlewan]

Originally Posted by Roberta

I don't know the species, but for the genus in general, I'd think "new growth". I think just sit back and watch, and let the plant tell you when it's ready.

I understand and would normally lean that way. However, all the other new growths have been in tight with the existing growths and haven't grown nearly so quickly.

The leaves at the bottom of the picture (and another picture, posted here hint at the tighter growth pattern.

I'd love it to be a stolon. Then I could use it to propagate (but I'd really like some education about how).

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by dlewan

I understand and would normally lean that way. However, all the other new growths have been in tight with the existing growths and haven't grown nearly so quickly.

The leaves at the bottom of the picture (and another picture, posted here hint at the tighter growth pattern.

I'd love it to be a stolon. Then I could use it to propagate (but I'd really like some education about how).

Don't rush to cut anything... many Pleurothallids make keikis readilly so once you have roots, will be easy to divide. Don't rush it...Best education comes from observation.

[dlewan]

Originally Posted by Roberta

Don't rush to cut anything... many Pleurothallids make keikis readilly so once you have roots, will be easy to divide. Don't rush it...Best education comes from observation.

Absolutely. I was always going to wait and see what it does. Indeed the oddly shaped tips have now unfurled to be leaves. So I'm guessing that the right answer is that it's just a long rhizome. I can certainly imagine that it can sense how big the cluster has grown and so produced hormones to try to continue elsewhere.

I'm certainly going to wrap the base of the new growth (the end of the rhizome) in sphagnum, but I suspect I shouldn't separate it until it has at least a few growths.

Any thoughts? Specifically, any thoughts on getting it to start on a new mount?

[Roberta]

If it were my plant, I'd just sit back and watch what it does. If it's one of the Pleurothallids that makes keikis (with roots), the job becomes very easy. If it does, you went to wait until the roots are well developed. Orchids in general (there are a few exceptions) don't do well from cuttings, they need to develop roots first. For now, patience. This is a miniature, so it will never get very big. That is a good thing because no matter how much room you have, you never have enough once the addiction takes hold.