Phalaenopsis gigantea - long term growing project

[katsucats]

Originally Posted by camille1585

Is that really s/h you are doing if the reservoir level is under the net pot? Do you have some photos of the potting set up? I'm not sure I'm visualizing it correctly from your description.

The net pot has 3 horizontal layers. I fill up to the first layer from the bottom. From there, I let it drain until whenever my next watering is. I've recently begun putting wicks in some of the pots, but not yet for the Phals. I'm an underwaterer and I don't have a daily routine to keep it at exactly the desired water level every morning like Ray prescribes. In my experiments with hybrid Phals, I could keep it alive for months without watering again using this method, or even using semi-hydro with orchid bark. The moisture zone maintains humidity in the media and the bottom half of the LECA doesn't dry out. It's almost as if it's mounted. In my opinion, this is the more resilient semi-hydro 2.0. The only downside is flushing involves taking the net pot out and dumping the reservoir, which isn't that hard, nor do I think is necessary on every watering.

Originally Posted by camille1585

(so more watering because they dry out faster)

Are you saying they're more thirsty and dry out faster, so you top it off more often?

[camille1585]

Originally Posted by katsucats

The net pot has 3 horizontal layers. I fill up to the first layer from the bottom. From there, I let it drain until whenever my next watering is. I've recently begun putting wicks in some of the pots, but not yet for the Phals. I'm an underwaterer and I don't have a daily routine to keep it at exactly the desired water level every morning like Ray prescribes. In my experiments with hybrid Phals, I could keep it alive for months without watering again using this method, or even using semi-hydro with orchid bark. The moisture zone maintains humidity in the media and the bottom half of the LECA doesn't dry out. It's almost as if it's mounted. In my opinion, this is the more resilient semi-hydro 2.0. The only downside is flushing involves taking the net pot out and dumping the reservoir, which isn't that hard, nor do I think is necessary on every watering.

Thanks for the explanation, I understand your system better!

Are you saying they're more thirsty and dry out faster, so you top it off more often?

I am using leca as a medium, but I'm not using it in combination with s/h. The outer pot is a standard plastic pot with drainage holes and there is no reservoir. I water by soaking the pot in a bucket, the same I do for all my other plants potted in bark.

[Mr.Fakename]

That's some very nice growth Sade, but those are hybrids; this thread is about gigantea as a species!

[SADE2020]

Originally Posted by Mr.Fakename

That's some very nice growth Sade, but those are hybrids; this thread is about gigantea as a species!

Oh well, thank you for bump me Fakename .... So I am out of here with my boring hybrids
But *I'll be back* with the real thing if I ever find it. I've been searching for it and I couldn't find it for the past year.

[camille1585]

Seeing how little few people grow the species (or just little interest in this thread/project) I would not object if a primary hybrid is in here. The the influence of a more 'normal' Phal does make the hybrid generally significantly easier to grow... It could be nice to compare how the species and a primary hybrid develop!

I see you deleted the post with the photos, but those were nice looking seedlings Sade!

[Mr.Fakename]

Originally Posted by SADE2020

Oh well, thank you for bump me Fakename .... So I am out of here with my boring hybrids
But *I'll be back* with the real thing if I ever find it. I've been searching for it and I couldn't find it for the past year.

Schwerter often has some up for sale:
Orchids and orchids accessoires of schwerter orchideenzucht

Asendorfer is home to the famous Starship cultivar, which makes selfings that bloom super small and smell like burnt plastic:
Shop – Asendorfer Orchideenzucht

Orchideen Blumen Janke is a lesser known shop, but I've heard good things about them. They have earned several awards, some for their Phal gig.
Phalaenopsis gigantea - Botanische Phalaenopsis - Shop Blumen Janke

[SADE2020]

Thanks Camille and Mr.FN!
I'll definitely look up the vendors, my problem sometimes is that they don't delivery to my place, mainly to mainland.

So I can publish back my seedlings? .
I confess growing young plants and babies is the most boring thing for me; .. Tic toc .. tic toc ... And I didn't mean to grow hybrid common seedlings in the first place but do it with a Gigantea Hybrid was kind of tempting. I have a felling that the Gigantia ADN and genetic will prevail. And now the Expert (Camille) confirmed

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by SADE2020

Thanks Camille and Mr.FN!
I'll definitely look up the vendors, my problem sometimes is that they don't delivery to my place, mainly to mainland.

So I can publish back my seedlings? .
I confess growing young plants and babies is the most boring thing for me; .. Tic toc .. tic toc ... And I didn't mean to grow hybrid common seedlings in the first place but do it with a Gigantea Hybrid was kind of tempting. I have a felling that the Gigantia ADN and genetic will prevail. And now the Expert (Camille) confirmed

Oh yes, bring back the seedlings!

[neophyte]

It's completely unfair how much variety in Phalaenopsis species the European vendors offer; over here it's so hard to get anything... ah well.

[Ericvogt]

Hey!
A friend of mine sold me his gigantea a few days ago, and I want to share it with you and take notes on what you are doing.
Im growing it in a bookshelf just a few cm away from the window oriented south-south-west. I get very high temperatures in summer, the range is between 19º C in winter to 36ºC in summer (inside the house, outside we get 47ºC), and the humidity goes between 39 to 76%.... a wide range of both.
Also I let them be in full sunshine (while I have air contitioned on so the temperature doesn´t rise too much) and it looks like for now its enjoing it a lot. Hope it starts to form a few roots or a leaf.

Also I have the same seedling as Sade2020 a cross between P. gigantea x P. Sogo White (I have 4 of those and 2 are startint to look a lot more like gigantea because of the color of the leaves and 2 look more like Sogo white)