Orchid Sunday

[Dollythehun]

Leafmite, it is a beautiful plant. You're going to love it anyway!

---------- Post added at 04:19 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:14 PM ----------

Well, we both have been sick this week. I have coughed so much my ribs hurt. Hopefully we are on the uptick.
Like Salixx, I made a good haul this week: three plants from H&R and four from Lowe's. There's a couple I have never even heard of. Lots of new buds and roots and a few spikes, so that part of me is happy.

[jkofferdahl]

Originally Posted by Dollythehun

Like Salixx, I made a good haul this week: three plants from H&R and four from Lowe's. There's a couple I have never even heard of. Lots of new buds and roots and a few spikes, so that part of me is happy.

Carol, I read this and remembered something I'd meant to ramble on about in my earlier post. Last August I bought six fairly small Phal. equestris seedlings; two "plain" (sounds like a doughnut), two alba, and two blue. I decided to experiment with these and so planted each into 3-inch plastic baskets using sphagnum. Yeah, dreaded sphagnum. I left about 1/2 inch of open space beneath the moss in each pot. At the time, each plant had acceptable roots, though nothing special. With the good air movement where they grow, the sphagnum dries out completely in 36-48 hours. Nine months after potting each plant has doubled in size, and three of the six (sold as 12-18 months from blooming size) have spikes with one of those three started a second spike which now surprisingly appears to have decided to become a keiki. What's most impressive to me, though, has been the root development of these plants. Roots are everywhere. In abundance. Like velamin-skinned worms. Big, thick roots have all but filled the bottom of the pots, with others coming out through the basket holes and over the tops of the pots, plenty of green tips everywhere. Honestly, I've never seen such vigor from seedlings before. I'm not saying that I've found a magical method, but I AM saying that all seedlings I buy henceforth will be potted in this manner (and several others which are still seedlings either have been or will soon be).

One complaint: They've done so well that they've outgrown the 3" baskets in just 9 months.