Phrag lindenii

[orchidsarefun]

Anyone grow this species? I'm interested in the growing conditions as data on the internet is all over the place. I've been growing it intermediate and it doesn't do much. Some sites say it's cool to cold growing.

[Roberta]

I grow it pretty much intermediate (low around 58 deg F, high a bit over 90 deg F), light is what I'd call bright shade. I have see in-situ photos of it at higher elevations (like around 2700 m in Ecuador) so I suspect that it can tolerate cooler temperatures than most Phrags but doubt that is a requirement Mine grows OK ... about 1 new growth, that blooms, per year while the previous year's growth dies back. So it stays the same size. After seeing those Ecuador photos, I'm thinking of moving mine outside in the spring. It grows over a wide range of elevations, I would suspect that individual plants might have slightly different optimum conditions from each other. Maybe try growing it a little brighter?

[orchidsarefun]

Mine is indoors at a 70-80f range. It's in a South facing window so light isn't a problem. It's doubled in size but never bloomed. I think I'm going to put it in the basement at 55-65f temps and then move it warmer in about 8 weeks.

[Roberta]

That bit of a shock may well be useful. (Fear works...) Let us know if that helps.

[MrHappyRotter]

How long have you had it? Sometimes it's just a matter of patience.

The group of Phrags that include lindenii (i.e. long petaled) are, at least for me, slower growers and more reluctant bloomers than those in other sections (i.e. wet growers). So, if your expectations are that this will grow and bloom like Phrag. Eric Young, then you will need to dial that back quite a bit.

I haven't noticed any major differences in temperature requirements, though I concur, I've seen lots of folks online suggesting they prefer cooler temperatures for the "caudatum-type" long petaled Phrags. However, I doubt it's a hard requirement since I've seen them growing and blooming just fine in the heat of summer greenhouses in the Southern USA.

However, if you suspect temperatures are an issue and you don't have the means to provide the plant with cooler air temps, you can try a zeer pot. I use several versions of this technique with some success to keep the roots cooler on some of my orchids. Basically I pot the orchid in a plastic pot, which I set down into a zeer of sorts. In all variations that I use, I take care to prevent the potting mix and roots from sitting in water, which is particularly important with these long petaled Phrags since they tend to be disease prone if their mix is kept wet year round the way I grow my other Phrags.

[orchidsarefun]

It's 2 years old. Purchased with 2 growths, now has 5.
It could also be over potted but I'm not going to repot - at least see if this trial in the basement works.

Thanks for the info on the zeer pot. I've used cache pots but those are an interesting adapt.

[MrHappyRotter]

I'd wait to repot as well, it's not the ideal time of year. At least wait until late winter or early spring and even then wait until there's new growth or signs of new roots. Since these grow year round, it's not as critical to avoid winter repotting as it would be with other genera, however, it's still advisable to wait until it's warmer and natural day length is longer.

These do seem to bloom best when they are a bit root bound. Overpotting is definitely riskier than underpotting.

Also, going from 2 growths to 5 growths in the course of 2 years is certainly a reasonable and respectable growth rate for these long petaled species. So, I think it's mostly just a thing where you'll need to be more patient. If you can increase the light levels a bit, that might help as well. And certainly if it's not in bloom by 2020, then it may be that your light levels need to be adjusted upwards.