99% DIY Orchidarium Project

[kcpi3141]

Summer is approaching and I am realizing that my terrarium is about 2-3 months behind the outside season changes based on typical bloom schedules for many plants.

For pics, just some Pleurothallids and other random stuff. Started playing with focus stacking a couple months ago and got some pretty nice results for the first tries!


Pleurothallis ornata






Trichosalpinx pergrata







Lepanthes regularis

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Pleurothallis dressleri













Masdevallia brachyura







Sphyrospermum buxifolium





Pinguicula mesophytica

[kcpi3141]

Everything going strong, except for a moderate aphid infestation that I don't know how it happened. Trying different products to control them without damaging plants or the established microfauna biodiversity.


Bulbophyllum chrysotes









Schoenorchis fragrans (no fragrace )









Aerangis jacksonii

[kcpi3141]

Scaphosepalum merinoi. Very easy to grow and likes it moist.

Aphid infestation is still there but much more controlled now. Fall-blooming plants are starting to bud!

[kcpi3141]

Little Announcement:

I decided to break down the enclosure into a much simpler form. I will be graduating in a couple of months and will not know where I will be staying for a year of residency, and so it will be difficult to take this with me or have my family members back home take care of it for me.

While I am not selling my entire collection, I am hoping to unmount each plant and put them in pots, making the enclosure less of a diorama and more like a normal greenhouse where I can move plants around easier. This is because it will allow me to sanitize each plant and remove all pests, and allow for easier management of future pest problems. The aphids and snails are just impossible to get rid of at this point due to all the available hiding spots in such an enclosure, and so for the time being I will be making this growing space as simple as possible.

The break down process will be painful as all the plants are more or less permanently mounted on the enclosure. There will be a lot of setbacks on some plants as I have to rip out the roots from the wall. All in all it has been an amazing experience but until in the far future once I have a large greenhouse where I can easily introduce biological control or space for a quarantine environment, I will not be making such a complicated scape that is not well isolated from the surrounding room.

[Roberta]

Best of wishes for this next stage of life! And hope all goes well for the orchids, Sounds like you have a good plan.

[WaterWitchin]

Best of luck going forward with both your training AND your orchids. It may not have been a perfect experiment from a bug standpoint, but it has been beautiful, an excellent journey. Can't wait to see what's next...

I used to do a lot of habitat aquariums. Each had its own beauty and drawbacks. It is hard to move forward, but so rewarding. Especially the memories...

[Canadienne]

The best of luck for you and your orchids, whatever the future may bring.
I will be forever thankful for the step by step instructions you did on your Orchidarium built and placed on this forum,as well as your outsttanding photography of your plants.
I followed those steps and built an Orchidarium as well. It’s in the process of getting established and doing well.Over time I will add more orchids.
Wanda

[WaterWitchin]

That's really looking good Canadienne!

[kcpi3141]

Originally Posted by Roberta

Best of wishes for this next stage of life! And hope all goes well for the orchids, Sounds like you have a good plan.

Thank you! Hopefully the transition will go smoothly!

Originally Posted by WaterWitchin

Best of luck going forward with both your training AND your orchids. It may not have been a perfect experiment from a bug standpoint, but it has been beautiful, an excellent journey. Can't wait to see what's next...

I used to do a lot of habitat aquariums. Each had its own beauty and drawbacks. It is hard to move forward, but so rewarding. Especially the memories...

Thank you as well! I am so sad to tear it down knowing that I won't have something like this for years down the line...It will certainly be a part of me moving forward (and New York depending on if I decide to throw the rocks back into the Hudson or keep them haha). I will certainly look into building something that will seal very well in the future so I can CO2 bomb everything if pests come.

Originally Posted by Canadienne

The best of luck for you and your orchids, whatever the future may bring.
I will be forever thankful for the step by step instructions you did on your Orchidarium built and placed on this forum,as well as your outsttanding photography of your plants.
I followed those steps and built an Orchidarium as well. It’s in the process of getting established and doing well.Over time I will add more orchids.
Wanda

Thank you Wanda, it really means a lot to me that it has helped others. I too scourged for information online when I was planning this, and it was so hard to find consistent and well-documented information. I am really glad I was able to be of help through both my failures and successes. Please don't hesitate to post or message me if you need anything! And please post more pictures of your orchidarium...we would all love to see and learn more about it!