Amami Furan - Orchid Mail!

[cgrace]

My NYE Ebay purchase arrived today from JapaneseOrchids!

It looks pretty ok to me, but, I am also a beginner... so, maybe not picking up on every nuance. Either way, this is my first neo and am beside myself with glee!

[charlesf6]

Looks very, very good to me!

[Pattywack]

Oh now you’ve done it! That looks like a very nice plant and Japaneseorchids is an excellent vendor, beautiful, healthy plants.

Neofinetia are quite addictive, better find a nice grow area for the collection you are going to obtain. When these plants flower the fragrance is amazing! Congratulations on your new plant!

[No-Pro-mwa]

Looks very nice congrats.

[cgrace]

Thank you so much, everyone! I'm hooked!

(also should this be going into spike? i saw quite a few dried up/dead spikes. it looks like this will need a repot as well. i read that right before the growing season aka late winter is when to do this? guidance appreciated )

[Shoreguy]

The big question is not whether it will spike now or later but what method you are going to use for repotting, sphag
or a bark mixture. Spiking will take care of itself given good light and proper watering and feeding.

Sphag repotting requires a learning process and might present problems at first. Also watering might not be so intuitive as it's pretty easy to overwater sphag.

Seeding bark (preferably with added shredded tree fern for aeration) might be the better alternative although considered non traditional. It’s worked for me with neos for over 40 years. It does not require repotting as frequently due to breakdown as long as you don't over feed or overwater. Always place coarser bark at the bottom of the pot for drainage.

Make sure you totally drench the pot with lukewarm water before removing the plant for repotting in order to make the roots more pliable to prevent root damage.

Amami furan was a good first choice as it should be able to take some abuse before you get more experienced.

[estación seca]

I started with an $8 no-name Neo to learn on. They aren't that hard to grow, but they require different care from most other orchids. And there are mistakes that will kill them quickly. I still don't feel ready for a more expensive Neo.

[camille1585]

Congrats on your first Neo! You'll see, they're addictive little things.