species or hybrids

[SlipperGirl]

Originally Posted by AnonYMouse

I don't know why the slipper people think species are better. Have you asked them? I'm curious of their reasoning.

No I have not but I should ask them

[Ferns Daddy]

Would love to have a species, but until I learn more on the care of orchids I'll stick to hybrids

[greengarden]

I am a botanist by training so I'm a bit of a purist and do love my 'pure' plants. I do still have a far few hybrids floating around my collection but nothing thrills me more than getting my hands on something quirky and interesting that nature created all on its own. I have aspirations of owning every single Australian Bulbophyllum species for example, its an achievable number, only about 27 species, but many are hard to get in the trade.

[Andrew]

Originally Posted by mothorchidgirl

No I have not but I should ask them

Looking at the ST thread in question, it was just tongue-in-cheek, species snobbery. Nothing wrong with that if taken in context.

Some orchid people prefer growing species, others like hybrids. There are different skill sets involved with growing species vs hybrids, so neither should be considered the mark of an experienced grower. It all comes down to taste and where you want to put your efforts.

Personally, I grow both and think that focusing on specific genera is a better road to success with orchids than the show-ponying and manhood-measuring of the species vs hybrids debate.

[Paul Mc]

LOL... I admit I haven't read this while thread but the last commenter made me laugh! Hats off to you!

In my humble opinion, it doesn't really matter. If you like it, try it. After all, isn't that why we started growing in the first place?

I admit, I now grow more species than hybrids, but I enjoy the challenge as species can sometimes be more temperamental than their hybrid counterparts. But I have a heck of a time passing by one thats a hybrid that I love as well!

Perhaps there is a place for species versus hybrids, but as a hobby grower who just loves orchids, its a moot point for me.

[AnonYMouse]

Hijack alert!

Originally Posted by Ferns Daddy

Would love to have a species, but until I learn more on the care of orchids I'll stick to hybrids

Unless the specie you are interested in has a reputation for a bad temperament or is particularly pricey, go for it! Make a list of what you would like and start looking up their culture.

If price is a concern, Ebay is a good source of inexpensive species (check the sellers' reputations).

[greengarden]

I agree, infact I have had m ore trouble with some of my hybrids than I have with most of my species.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

I haven't read the SlipperTalk Forum thread in question, however, species are not "better" than hybrids, and neither are hybrids "better" than species.

I'm aware of hybrids that can frustrate an experienced hobbyist, just the same as an unfamiliar species can.

An unfamiliar species can be "difficult to grow" if you don't know much about it at all.

Although, arguably there are definitely species that are impossible to grow due to their growing habits and symbiotic nature with fungi.

Whether you choose hybrids or species is up to the grower. Whatever reasons you have for growing either species or hybrids, or both can be plentiful.

But I do propose one thing that hasn't been brought up yet in this thread...

If you're interested in making the number of species of orchids available in the market more varied and interesting, or if you're interested in conservation of the species through the practice of cultivation, or if you're interested in making the gene pool of certain orchids of interest more diverse; then yeah, some of these reasons may be valid for going for species orchids. There might be more reasons for growing species orchids, such as just being interested in species orchids, but ultimately you have to find your own reason for growing whatever you choose to grow.

Do understand this though - many hybrids do not need to be "saved" in the context of conservation. If you're trying to save your hybrid orchid, it is sentimental, and that is just fine, you can admit it and everybody will be ok with it.

Why say that many hybrids don't need to be saved in the context of conservation?

Because it's been brought up before, and I want people to understand that saving a hybrid is not the same as saving a species. The stakes of losing a hybrid is extremely low, because many are produced, (as in a product).

The stakes of losing a species is far higher. Once they're gone, they're gone.

Another thing to think about is that sometimes, many species orchids have very low availabilities in the hobby because it is a niche market, and catering to this market doesn't always make people money.

Idk, but I think that maybe some of these "species snobs" might be congratulating you for growing a species Paph in this manner as well. It makes some sense to me as many Paph growers are aware that habitat destruction is making their beloved Paphs rarer and rarer in their natural habitats as time goes by.

[Silje]

I don't care!
When I scroll through the catalog dreaming (and sometimes planning) my next purchase, I just tick off those that I like. It's secondary to me if they are hybrids or species, and my collection is a mess that tells the same story. No order whatsoever. It will be a challenging winter in the greenhouse, I'm telling you...to try to keep those that need a dry winter spell away from the heavy drinkers year round. I should really start to focus in one direction... I know this is not species vs hybrid related, but in a way it still show my random wandering in the orchid universe.

I HAVE considered focusing my attention on orchids from southern Africa, but so far they're only a handful or so. And I would miss out on so many beautiful cattleyas and dendrobiums, and what would I do with all these noid phals that tend to jump into my shopping trolley?

I've got a couple of dendrobium species, one angreacum, one aerangis, a few eulophias and ansellias. I think I even got a cattleya in there somewhere.

When I buy plants, I look at the column that indicates species or hybrid last. And when I do, I actually tend to opt for the hybrids thinking I'll have a more robust plant (and God knows I need a robust plant to deal with my rough handling).

I'll admit though, that I DO have a VERY soft spot for my jenkinsiis and lindleyis and my species Aerangis and Angreacum, as well as my ansellias, but I'm not sure it's species related.

Oooops, or maybe it is. I'm a species snob that just have not come out of the closet yet!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by Silje

I HAVE considered focusing my attention on orchids from southern Africa, but so far they're only a handful or so.

It is true. Many South African native orchids are not common in the orchid hobby. There is a reason for this...

1. They are incredibly difficult to grow from seed!

Many of these summer or winter rainfall Disa seeds take forever to germinate!!!

It took something on the order of 6 months to 1 year in order for Troy from Troy Meyers Conservatory to germinate the very few seeds of Disa chrysostachya I sent him.

It has taken Kevin from Kevin Western Labs an equally long time to get another set of Disa seeds I sent him to germinate. Out of all the different sets of seeds I sent him, he was only able to germinate 2 sets of seeds, (I sent him a lot, I don't remember the exact number though; >7 sets I think, idk)!

Once they get out of the protocorm stage and into the seedling stage, they start to take off in growth rate.

Unfortunately, some species are difficult to grow once they are deflasked for some reason.

2. Not many people understand how they grow in the wild, and therefore, have a very difficult time figuring out how to properly grow many of them in cultivation in the long run.

This one kills me every time. I had to do research that went above and beyond just orchids to even know what I know now, and it is just scratching the surface.

3. In the entire world, I know of only a select group of people who can say they have been able to grow summer or winter rainfall Disas in-vitro. This select group I can count on one hand, (maybe both hands if I miscounted).

4. Low interest from hobbyists keeps South African native orchids out of the hobby.

Disa aurata, Disa cardinalis, Disa tripetaloides, and Disa uniflora frustrate many people who try growing them. Many give up. Few actually succeed. Although, the numbers of people who do succeed may be slowly increasing.

There have also been word of other South African natives of being difficult to grow, (such as Bartholina spp.), and these further put people off to the notion of growing South African native orchids.


Aside from Disas, I'm aware of the Eulophias and such, but I find it odd that South African Eulophias, (or African Eulophias for that matter), haven't gained much in popularity other than Eulophia petersii.

Although...

I have found that Stenoglottis spp. are pretty easy to grow. They are not nearly as frustrating as Disas are to grow.