Aerides seasonal care

[smweaver]

Thanks, Eric, for the words of encouragement. It's a fairly carefree plant (the A. odorata, that is), so even if it doesn't choose to flower for the next couple of years, that's fine with me. I guess I just wanted to get a second opinion to make sure that I'm doing everything (or at least most everything) right.

Marilyn, I found the pot at a local nursery. I think that it was intended to grow either herbs or strawberries. But it seems to work well for vandaceous orchids too (mainly I got it because it's easier to train all of those aggressive roots to stay--for the most part--inside the pot instead of rudely invading the pots of any nearby plants).

Steve

[OrchidLover1982]

I grow mine outdoors in the subtropics and they get lots of water during the warmer months of the year and i keep them quite dry during the cooler winter months. They seem to like this and do well for me.

[smweaver]

Do you vary the light levels during the cooler months also, or just the temperatures and amounts of water they receive?

[OrchidLover1982]

Apart from seasonal variation in daylength etc i do not alter how much light they get. They stay in the same place summer and winter subject to seasonal variation. They definitely slow right down during the cooler months and this is when i keep them quite dry. If i overwater them at this time i find problems arise such as yellowing and dropping of leaves. Spots on leaves etc. During summer i give them a good spray daily usually in the evening and they seem to like this and soak up the moisture during the night.

[smweaver]

Good to know. One last question: When do your plants bloom? I know that it probably depends on the species, but I'm trying to get a feel for when I should start looking for spikes. I have an A. quinquevulnera that I acquired in the winter of 2007. Although it's only 38 cm tall, it has the remains of three old flower spikes, which gives me hope that I might see some flowers on it this year--although I have no idea when to expect them. Thanks for your feedback. It's much appreciated.

Steve

[OrchidLover1982]

most of the species seem to bloom in spring. The only species that i have that doesn't is lawrenceae which blooms in autumn for me. I'm not sure about quinquevulnera though as this is one i am yet to obtain. There might be some info online if you do some searching on what time this one blooms. I just looked on the orchidspecies.com website and it says summer and fall/autumn for quinquevulnera.