Hardcane Dendrobium keiki's

[OrchidSeer]

Hi All,

I have owned and grown a particular dendrobium hardcane orchid for several years which when in flower is absolutely stunning. Each year the plant puts out a single healthy growth and subsequently flowers when in season.

I would like to propagate more of this plant, however due to the single growth each year, and the total absence of keiki's on the plant, I am stuck at this point. (I am also excluding cloning, etc.)

The plant is quite healthy, with three large (90cm+ canes) and three smaller back canes which I removed and potted to see if they will produce a growth.

Does anyone know if feeding a hardcane dendrobium a nitrogen rich fertiliser through the winter/dormant period has the same effect as on a softcane dendrobium, with the production of keiki's at the expense of flowers come spring?

If all else fails I can always try applying keiki paste, but I was curious if the above nitrogen fed method was a viable option as winter is coming...

Thanks.
OrchidSeer.

[voyager]

I cannot speak for the high nitrogen treatment method.
And, I do not like to generate a lot of keikis high up on the pseudo bulb that need to be removed then started on their own.
They take too long to reach blooming size for my satisfaction.
But, I do have a liking for increasing the growth of a plant into specimen size as quickly as possible.

It does entail the use of a keiki paste, but only on any and all live nodes low on all the pseudo bulbs where the new growth can stay attached to the mother plant for assistance while developing its own root system.
It should develop just like a new growth but you should be able to generate more of them than the original plant wants to on its own.

Not sure if this will work for your specific plant.
But, I have used it many times to quickly increase the size of a Dendrobium species grouping quite effectively.

[Bombotany]

I wouldn't mess around with fertilizer on a plant I like. Keiki paste is definitely the way to go, you can pick a small amount up on Amazon. It's true that keikis are formed from nutrient buildup near growth nodes, but there are other ways to make it happen. Stress from extreme heat or light usually does the trick. I just moved a batch of hard-cane Dendro's that were so close to LED lights, leaf tips were burning off. There were keikis everywhere!