Sarcoglottis sceptrodes care

[andrew__]

I have a Sarcoglottis sceptrodes I bought in spike almost a month ago and I'm sure it's pretty close to flowering (the spike's probably around 2' tall which is impressive considering it's in a tiny little pot).

I've been trying to read up on these and their care but keep hitting vendor sites that basically say "Very easy orchid grown for the foliage" but never actually say what the care is. I found one site that very briefly mentioned dormancy and another that stated that these are deciduous. A third site mentions that all Sarcoglottis species need a "slight dormant period after flowering, with some requiring a complete break from watering, so it's important to know what species you're growing and what its dormancy needs are" (here) but does not elaborate much further.

Maybe I'm just not looking in the right place but I can't find any useful information on this plant.

What should I do during and after flowering with regard to watering etc?
What should I do once the plant has died back?
When should I repot it and into what soil? (It is in moss, moss is recommended a lot so probably moss... and up by 1 pot size?)
How when will it break dormancy? Do I need to do something or just water and wait until it does something?

Any advice will be much appreciated, this is my first orchid that will go dormant/die back and I just want to be prepared. I'll post a picture when it blooms as well. It's in something like a 2-3" square pot but the spike's about 2' tall and still going.

[Ray]

Bookmark: http://www.orchidspecies.com, where I got this:

Found from Mexico, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Panama in lower rainforests at elevations of sealevel to 1000 meters as a large sized, hot growing terrestrial or pseudo-lithophyte on rocks in soil deposits above streams with a basal rosette of, fasciculate, glabrous below and pubescent above, long-petiolate leaves that blooms in the winter and early spring on a loosely several flowered inflorescence with acuminate floral bracts

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by Ray

Found from Mexico, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Panama in lower rainforests at elevations of sealevel to 1000 meters as a large sized, hot growing terrestrial or pseudo-lithophyte on rocks in soil deposits above streams with a basal rosette of, fasciculate, glabrous below and pubescent above, long-petiolate leaves that blooms in the winter and early spring on a loosely several flowered inflorescence with acuminate floral bracts

Sounds like the mix should be:

2 parts perlite or pumice
1 part woodland type potting soil

While it does partially answer the watering regimen, which is - don't let it dry out completely, but don't allow it to become soggy either. It doesn't answer the question of dormancy.

Since I've never grown this plant, I don't know what to say.

All I can offer is, watch the leaves and see what they do. That might clue you in on when to reduce or eliminate watering.

Although it doesn't sound like they like to be completely dry should they go dormant.

If this plant goes dormant, usually the best time to repot is during dormancy when there is a smaller chance of disturbing it, because usually the leaves and roots have died back, leaving behind either a tuber (stem or root) or an underground rhizome.

In terrestrial orchids, I've found that they don't like to be confined to too small of a pot. A good guideline for me when I grow terrestrials is:

1. Do the roots have ample space?

They shouldn't be all clustered together and pot bound like many of the home center Dendrobiums. The roots should have enough space to sprawl. All orchids have an advantitious root system versus a tap root system, so in terrestrial orchids it's not necessary to have too deep of a pot. It's more about how wide the pot is.

2. Do the leaves and shoots have ample space to grow?

Terrestrial orchids tend to be pretty sensitive to repotting or root disturbance in general. So if you've given the roots ample space to sprawl, you've most likely provided the plant with ample space to grow.

However, if the root system on the terrestrial orchid is naturally very sparse, then it's easier to look at how large the plants are and judge how much space the plant needs to produce about 2 seasons worth of growth.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Guess what...

Found an in situ pic. If you haven't seen this already then it might be helpful:

http://www.epidendra.org/taxones/Sar...es_in_situ.jpg

[cb977]

In my experience, this one works well for me with conditions you wouldn't think would work

I have mine in a 3" plastic basket, with sphag, hanging on a low rack so it's a bit shady and lots of water....it likes it wet

What I've found is that the old foliage dies back and fresh new stuff pops up along with the spike. The flowers are rather odd, kind of like an alien, nothing spectacular but it's a pretty plant nonetheless

Enjoy

http://www.orchidboard.com/community...ceptrodes.html

[andrew__]

Ok thanks guys

Susanne - it sounds like it doesn't take much time between the old leaves dying back and new ones coming in?

[syspila]

I am new on here but I have had a SARCOGLOTTIS SCEPTRODES for about 3 years, all the above is right on. After the flowers die back--now is July for me--the leaves die and I cut watering until I see new leaves coming up in a couple of months. I am told they will make additional bulbs tho mine has not done that. As far as flowers, they are not grab your attention spectacular until you take the time to look at them, in my opinion they are beautiful! Areally nice specimen.