Dendrobiums: Mounts vs. Pots

[samantha.c]

I've had Dens on mounts and in pots and have found that I tend to shy away from the mounted varieties because I worry that they won't get enough water when I travel for work. Unfortunately I absolutely love some of these varieties and feel like I'm missing out!

I know some orchids can grow equally well in a pot with the right substrate (I know this is not always the case), I'm wondering which of these may be okay in pots and what substrate you would recommend?

• Den. aberrans
• Den. jenkinsii
• Den. farmerii
• Den. lichenastrum
• Den. prenticei

I'm basically guessing right off that the last two cannot be grown in a pot at all, but maybe the first three?

[estación seca]

It depends on how long you travel. I know from experience the last two on cork mounts (along with toressae and wassellii, which you should also consider) are fine missing watering for a week if relative humidity is around 60%. They come from areas with very seasonal rainfall. Jenkinsii is not good for a week without water, potted nor mounted.

You could also get a large glass vase, put them in that right after watering, and cover it with plastic wrap just before you leave. Take care not to let the vase get direct sunlight or the plants might cook. Neither aberrans nor jenkinsii are much larger than the last two. Farmerii would need a fairly large vase; it is larger than the others mentioned.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

I think if you are going to grow Dendrobium lichenastrum as an epiphyte, they are better off mounted. If you are growing it as a lithophyte in granite rocks, they might be ok to grow potted.

It is not very practical to mount Den farmeri, they are difficult to mount because they get large.

[bil]

I have D farmerii on a mount and it does very nicely. I can see it getting quite big, because it is a good, steady grower, but then I will simply hack some off or remount it.

There is of course an engineering solution to everything. It wouldn't work for a big collection, but in your shoes I would set up a drip line to keep them moist. Either the equivalent of a saline bag, or else run a line to them from a mains supply. Remember to put those little stopcocks on every orchid as you will have to balance the flow or one orchid will get most of it.