Den. Blue Sapphire x Udom blue angel questions
 

Hey guys! Tonight we went to Lowe's, and they had a bunch of orchids on the clearance rack. Even though I swore I was gonna leave without a new orchid (just got a new one last week)... this guy was begging for a new home. And for $5, we couldn't resist.

Now, I'm not 100% he's a blue sapphire x udom blue angel, but that's the name the white tag had for him. I am 100% he's a dendrobium. And I'm 80% sure he's a hard cane, but I'm going off Google search and images.

My question- is the care for hard and soft canes the same? I can't seem to find anything really about differences, but I may not be looking in the right spot.


Also, if anyone knows any info on it, please share cause I'm not having any luck. It's driving me insane since I usually do research before buying.

Hi MississippiOrchids, I can't ever remember which are hard cane and which are soft cane. All the canes are hard, actually, so you can't tell them apart.

The important differences are that Dendrobium nobile hybrids tend to have soft, thin leaves that bend easily; they need a winter rest; and they usually drop their leaves after 1-2 years, even when happy. The Dendrobium phalaenopsis hybrids grow all year, have stiff thick leaves that will break rather than bend, and usually hold leaves at least 3-4 years when happy.

Yours is a Dendrobium phalaenopsis hybrid, which means warm, watered and fertilized all year.