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2008 Travis Wyman CPN article on growing Orchidioides - not available (what's up with that??) . . .
Since potting up several plants in these a few months ago, I've been very impressed with the plant's growth. Other than the eventual issues of repotting/dividing & invading neighboring pots, I love them! I find it interesting that already we see some growers using undrained pots, some regular pots and some net pots .... it should continue to be interesting as we see how all the plants grow...FWIW my souce of the 4x4x4 net baskets is http://www.petblvd.com/cgi-bin/pb/ESU77051.html?mv_pc=froogle
No documented sightings but as you note we need to be sure it is not for lack of an invitation...wonder if Nicole ever treads this way?
Agreed! Pics are always a good thing!! I'll try to slip in some here & there when I get a chance. Some of the pots aren't too accessible as I stick little pots full of LFS under wandering aerial roots for propagation.This thread needs more pics, so I'll help out.
Belanger has a CPN article on this and I've only really tried it with a U. quelchii leaf that came detached from BCP - so far, it appears to be a complete failure...Next is a U. endresii in the mix above, I have started 2 other pots of this stuff with just a leaf cutting, like you can do with U. longifolia. A few of the leaves (due to my carelessness) have fallen off and they started rooting in the bottom of the vivarium on the hydroton.
So that explains it - thank you. The newest few years are members only - so I could get it but not share it....This article is available to ICPS members. All I needed to do was download a PDF copy of the correct issue; Carniv. Pl. Newslett. 37(3):68-74. Then I could read the entire article including the photos.
I originally set up the tank with the right half dedicated to utrics in the 4x4 net pots and the left part attempting to duplicate the 10gal tank environment. On the left side, I set up a 'floor' of glass sheets on plastic bottles at the same height as the floor of a 10 gal (same distance from lights)(roughly). Just like in my 10 gal tanks, I line the space between pots with live LFS. It keeps the humidity in a reasonable range and acts as a visual indicator of low humidity.@Ron - How do you have the 75 setup with those cut up plastic bottles, are they just a way to raise up the plants? Are all of your pots sitting on LFS?
Interesting manifestation of (potentially) excessive fertilization (not that i would have any idea of how plants should react anyway) ... of my non-Iperua Orchidioides, this plant (and the 2 U. alpina clones) have exhibited the most robust growth so far ...This plant has not reacted well to the same feeding schedule. But to be honest it is also getting the least amount of light compared to the others (significant difference) So its ability to utilize the extra nutrients cannot be the same. Mea Culpa
@peter: seems to me that the ex section Iperua, or at least the majority of its clones can be grown in waterlogged conditions. the other members of orchidioides prefer more drier conditions as well. the way how you are growing campbelliana seems to support this.
Hi Peter,I'm new to this forum...
Definitely not boring here! Some questions on your U. campbelliana:looks like I'm a bore so maybe I'll stop for today
Hi Peter,
- I got some xaxim (or something similar - treefern roots) with an order a few months ago but have been scared to try it - seems like it would dry out very quickly... Also, mine appears to have a lot more air space between the little branches. There are different densities of the material? I think I would feel much more comfortable if the little branches/roots of the slab were more densely woven
Humidity is very high, ca. 80% during the day and over 90% at night. The light conditions are rather poor - two 15W fluorescent lights and normal daylight they get through an east-facing window. As you can see on the first pic, the xaxim slab stands constantly in water, maybe it even gets too wet sometimes! I've got a fogger onside the terrarium which is working 10 minutes every day. Spraying - from time to time The temps are ca. 77F during the day and 59F at night.what are your conditions? (humidity, lighting, watering/spraying schedule, temps, etc)
Yes, there are different densities but I think every treefern slab will work, even the ones that have a more sparse consistency. This utric really "catches" everything with it's stolons:- I got some xaxim (or something similar - treefern roots) with an order a few months ago but have been scared to try it - seems like it would dry out very quickly... Also, mine appears to have a lot more air space between the little branches. There are different densities of the material? I think I would feel much more comfortable if the little branches/roots of the slab were more densely woven
Exactly like that!- You just tied the LFS, the campy was growing in, onto the xaxim slab and it took off - growing into the slab - right?
3 months only or so, and the results are as shown! It really took off immediately- how long have you had it growing like this?
That metal thing is my cooler, that's a radiator which is cooled with water. I've got a freezer standing next to the terrarium, with a water pump and a reservoir inside. The cold water is pumped into the radiator.- what is the slab tied to in the 1st pic?
Tobias also has some growing vertically (on a rock?) and only says that the air is "slightly humid".
I usually water about once per week for most of the enclosures but that may be longer or shorter - depending on the conditions. I usually water when I see the live sphagnum drying out in several of the pots. As I'm trying to increase my humidity, I notice that the time between waterings is longer (as expected).By the way, what are your watering methods for the rest of the group?
Fwiw, I added some comments on my U. geminiloba over in RSS's flower thread.But I just can't get the watering of U.geminiloba right. This utric has been always one of the most demanding for me, what are your conditions?
Join the club! I've had some U. endresii for ~14-15 months. It has grown ok but has not taken the next step up beyond leaves of 1.5 - 2.5". About 2-3 months ago, I planted some netpots - one in 100% live LFS and the other in a fairly open peat mix. The plant in live LFS is has spread throughout the pot and is generally more robust than the other. Maybe RSS can provide some more hints as his seem to be doing very well...Also U.praetermissa and U.endressi don't do as good as I'd like them to in my collection.
U. quelchii has tormented me. The one I received 14-15 months ago promptly died back and I have struggled to nurse tiny remnants back to respectable growth. I 'seem' to be making some progress recently with higher humidity ((as he knocks on wood)). Another plant, received in late Sept with one leaf (~2"), has added a 2nd leaf similar leaf and several smaller ones. I just noticed yesterday that it is starting to send up another leaf (so there may yet be hope....).U.quelchii grows in the same conditions perfectly, ....
While I agree that U. alpina is the closest thing to a weed that I have (in the original Orchidioides), neither of my 2 clones have bloomed yet so i cannot say that I have yet made them completely 'happy'. The 2 smaller forms of reniformis have both grown like weeds but also have not flowered. The larger seedgrown clones are robust but also have yet to bloom and another clone (fairly large) puts out one leaf at a time. This leaf usually lasts for 1-3 months and then it dies and another comes up (sometimes another leaf comes up before it dies). I grew U. reniformis 'Enfant Terrible' for a few months before it's sickly self decided to just die ... The seedgrown clones will spend the winter in a cool back basement room (with my 'outside Cephs' and VFTs). I plan to dry them out and only give them water in the spring (& see if those massive swollen roots / rolons do any good ........as well as the weeds (reniformis, alpina etc)
I'll check it out for sure!In the 1st post in this thread, there is a link to a Belanger CPN article where he recommends a hard annual dormancy which helps to produce good growth & regular blooms (definitely recommend reading).
I noticed that U.quelchii needs a lot of time to get adapted to new conditions, the plantlet I received showed first signs of growth after 180 days! I keep mine in a net pot, only half an inch of water, looks like it's doing fine.U. quelchii has tormented me. The one I received 14-15 months ago promptly died back and I have struggled to nurse tiny remnants back to respectable growth. I 'seem' to be making some progress recently with higher humidity ((as he knocks on wood)). Another plant, received in late Sept with one leaf (~2"), has added a 2nd leaf similar leaf and several smaller ones. I just noticed yesterday that it is starting to send up another leaf (so there may yet be hope....).
There's a lot of various clones of these species, some of them flower rarely and some other are easy to. None of my alpinas ever flowered, but I know people that purchased alpinas in garden centres here and got them flowering on the windowsillWhile I agree that U. alpina is the closest thing to a weed that I have (in the original Orchidioides), neither of my 2 clones have bloomed yet so i cannot say that I have yet made them completely 'happy'. The 2 smaller forms of reniformis have both grown like weeds but also have not flowered.
Sorry to hear that. Was it kept in a net-pot? Hope you'll get another one soon!Later edit: While I was doing my morning misting, I decided I had waited long enough and I checked the U. praetermissa - bad news. No tubers and the only quasi-recognizable remnants of roots were rotten. While the inside of the pot was not really wet, it had more moisture than I expected, given that I was trying to keep it 'barely wet' (aka: mostly dry). So that stinks!
Hope you'll get nice results, I'm looking forward for photos of the plants' future progress on the xaxim!(...)I took one of my small U. asplundii 'spares', removed it from the small cup it was in and tied it and the LFS it was on to a treefern slab
Oh very nice! I didn't know you could propagate utrics from leaf pullings. Do you have pics of the flowers? I haven't ever seen a good thread on *just* pretty utric flowers...
that IS exciting! dont think anyone is willing to do leaf cuttings out of their precious orchidioides! that being said, i suppose the chances of striking depend on how much of the base leaf you have? something similar along the lines of petiolaris dews?