Epidendrum ilense 'Valley Isle'

The Epidendrum ilense I got only last February is in bloom again. The flowers are on one of the old canes. There are keikis on up and down the old canes. The two new growths are much taller. The plant seems happy in my hot, wet environment.

Epidendrum ilense grows in central and western Ecuador at 1000 to 2000 feet in wet, tropical forest. It is hot growing and can bloom any time of the year. Old canes and spikes can rebloom.

This plant is in a small amount of bark in a 3-inch plastic pot. It stands 18 inches above the pot and has 5 canes. I have put it in an outer clay pot because it is tippy. The newest canes need to be tied up.

Epigeneium nakaharaei

My Epigeneium nakaharaei is blooming and there is another spike formed on another of the new pseudobulbs. I got it in the winter of 2008 and it has grown slowly but steadily. The newest growth is smaller than the older. I take that to mean my conditions are less than perfect for the species.

Epigeneium nakaharaei grows in Taiwan in the central mountain range. It is cool to warm growing, fragrant and blooms in the fall and winter. It needs bright light. The genus Epigeneium (Epig) contains 35 species in Southeast Asia and the Philippines. They do well mounted and given warm, humid and shady conditions.

The bottom half of the plant has a lead and it has grown away from the mount. I have missed the new growth season but I think I will remove the bottom six pseudobulbs and make a division on cork.

Another option is to take the bottom seven off the mount and subdivide that into a 4-pseudobulb division and a 3-pseudobulb backbulb division. That would be an interesting choice and would not take much space.

Odtna Yellow Parade 'Alpine'

There are two times that an orchid will bloom, either it is happy or that it thinks death is near. My bet is the latter as the reason for this plant's flowers.

I took this outside and cut and cleaned. I thought I might get two divisions but one was really weak so I decided to pass. This one is weak enough but has two fairly well hydrated pseudobulbs and a new growth already started. It should do well enough to get going again. This is not a plant I will keep in the collection after it has rooted.

Cattleya Orchidglade

This Cattleya Orchidglade (Cattleya walkeriana x Cattleya aurantiaca) was a single pseudobulb division two years ago. Last year it sprouted and grew a new pseudobulb that was a little smaller than the first. This is usual with backbulb divisions.

This year new growth started but had a problem. Water got into the top of the new growth.We got crown rot and it stopped growing.

The plant has not given up. A second eye has activated and a second new growth has started along with new root growth. It is a bit late in the growing season for this to be occurring, but if I can water properly it should be ok. Blooming has probably been set back a year.

Dendrobium moschatum

I did a blog entry about this plant in bloom a few days ago, calling it Dendrobium fimbriatum oculatum. Well, an avid but anonymous blog reader pointed out that the tag was wrong and it was really Dendrobium moschatum. I was happy to get this information because I really want my plants correctly named.

Dendrobium moschatum grows in Southeast Asia at low altitudes. It is cool to hot growing, needs bright light and is fragrant. It blooms spring into summer on leafless canes. Flowers last only a few days.

Neofinetia falcata

My larger Neofinetia falcata is starting to bloom. There are lots of buds yet to open. I picked the plant up to look at it and see that there is root damage. It appears to be the work of a slug or snail. I have been a little lax in keeping the snail bait fresh and it doesn't last long in my wet environment.

Neofinetia falcata grows in Japan, Korea and the Ryukyu Islands. The species grows on deciduous trees and get more light in winter. They are fragrant and tolerate a wide range of temperatures. The genus Neofinetia (Neof) contains 3 species from Japan, Korea and the Ryukyu Islands.

Laelia anceps 'Irwins' AM/RHS x self

I saw a Laelia anceps for sale in spike on eBay. This is earlier than I would expect spikes. I started looking more closely at my plants when I watered them this week and I found my first spike too!

I did an impulse buy of a good sized Laelia anceps 'Irwins' AM/RHS x self August before last. It was a variety I didn't have. It was late in the growing season and I should have waited until spring to divide it. I have got very little to show for that purchase since most of the pieces have died.

Laelia anceps grows well and blooms well in cultivation. It grows in Mexico and Honduras. It is warm to hot growing, needs a dry winter rest and bright light. If it is dry it can winter outside if there is no hard freeze. This plant is in sphagnum over clay in a 5 1/2-inch clay pot. There are three pseudobulbs and it stands 9 inches above the pot.

Google+?

I have set up an "Orchids" circle on Google+. I have not been on it long and am still getting to know it. So far I haven't posted much that you wouldn't see on the blog.

I see potential in this beyond repeating from the blog. I have identified orchid friends among the people who have found me and put them in the Orchids circle so that we can share orchid stuff in a different way than blog comments. Maybe try the webcam "hangout" feature sometime?

If you are on Google+ already and would like to help me figure this out, please set up a separate circle for orchid posts and do at least one post about your orchids. Then add me, Richard Lindberg, to that circle. I will see your orchid post and add you to my orchid circle.

If you are not already on Google+ I have some invitations. Get my email address from here and we will find one for you.

Eria spicata

I got this Eria spicata from the raffle table at Sonoma in March 2009. This is the first time it has bloomed. This plant is in peagravel in a 3-inch plastic pot. There are seven pseudobulbs and it stands 8 inches above the pot.

Eria spicata grows throughout Southeast Asia in the lower mountains. It is warm to hot growing, needs bright light and is fragrant. It blooms in spring and summer. The genus Eria (Eria) contains 370 species that are found across tropical Asia and out through the Pacific Islands. They have quite varried cultural needs, so check on the specific species for help with growing.

Tree Rats or Ordinary Rats?

I have continued to have damage to my orchids. I have decided that it is beyond the scope of mice. This Epidendrum was a nice, actively growing plant. Then, one morning all the green was gone. And it is not the only one.

I have an electric rat trap and I am going to set that. However, my hopes ride on this rodent annoyer. It is in the rafters by the greenhouse door. The door is open during the day when it is warm.

So far there has been no damage to the outdoor area but I am planning to put one of the electronic repellent gizmos over there too.

Mexipedium xerophyticum

Another orchid I saw for the first time at Mary Ann Alexandri’s open greenhouse Saturday was her Mexipedium xerophyticum. This is a cute half-inch slipper orchid not seen in cultivation very much.

Mexipedium xerophyticum grows in Mexico in limestone with cactus and other arid growing plants. It is hot to warm growing and needs a 3-month dry winter rest. The genus consists of this single species, separated from Cypripedium because of the fleshy, thick, stiff, leathery leaves, the very small flowers.

I am excited that the picture turned out as well as it did. It is very small and I took the picture hand-held in less than ideal conditions because of the green quality the shadecloth gave the light.

Eulophia petersii

One of my favorite orchid society activities is open greenhouses. Yesterday was Mary Ann Alexandri’s and I remembered to bring my camera. The greenhouse was great, full but not cluttered; Phals on one side, Vandas on the other. It was 12x16 with lots of hanging pots.

One of her plants in bloom was a Eulophia petersii that she had won at last years BBQ and auction. It has huge pseudobulbs and 7-foot spikes. The pot sits on the floor and the flower I took a picture of was right at eye level.

Cattleya forbesii

Last year at about this time I bought a couple of Cattleya forbesii seedlings. None of the plants in the flask had bloomed at that time, but one of them bloomed for me almost right away.

Cattleya forbesii grows in Brazil near the coast and streams near the ocean. It is fragrant, cool to warm growing and blooms in the winter. It is best grown mounted and in bright light.

This is the second plant. It was no different from the other in size but it waited until this year to bloom. Where the first one showed no color at all, there is a bit of a blush on this one. It is very subtle but it is there. The picture I just took of it doesn't show it well, but I will take it outdoors into more natural light and try again later.

Cattleya percivaliana marmoreada

With my Cattleya percivaliana marmoreada I have the situation where the plant is growing out of the pot but I don't want to repot. All the new roots are outside the pot and need to be watered more frequently than the rest of the pot. An easy and effective solution is to put one pot inside of another larger one with a few pieces of rock to keep it from moving too much in the bigger pot.

Cattleya percivaliana grows in Venezuela and Colombia in the mountains above 4000 feet near rivers. It is a large sized lithophytic plant out in the full sun. It is fragrant and blooms in the fall. This variety is a beautiful and rare color form which features unusual tessellations throughout petals and sepals.

This plant will produce a division next spring and another the spring after that. I got this backbulb division in April last year and it sprouted and bloomed for Christmas. I may get two spikes in bloom for the spring show if leave it outside as long as possible to try to delay blooming.