Any questions regarding our terrestrial Orchids? Post your questions and answers here and lets discuss.


Picture of Calanthe Kozu flowering outside in the ground in my cage last year, just so this thread will start with a thumbnail.

All the native ones will be flowering here soon. Fingers crossed I find them to photograph.

Oh, I look forwards to that!

Ursula, Am I correct in assuming that the ones that grow outside in your area all require a cold, dry winter dormant period ? Things will go dormant here, but not very cold, and unless potted to be movable, not dry. ( except this year) We do have a couple of native orchids here, but I've never seen them for sale, and can't remember the names off the top of my head. I'm thinking that the ones I've protected from the rain have been too warm in the winter. The big ones like Cyms, Epis, and Sobralias do fine in large pots of chunky bark outside.

Carol wrote:

Am I correct in assuming that the ones that grow outside in your area all require a cold, dry winter dormant period ?

Depending on their specific habitat here in the North East - the ones I know all receive plenty of water even when they are dormant. I can't think of any local terrestrial requiring a DRY dormant period. Some of them like Spiranthes surely like a LOT of moisture, but need to drain well. Some grow in true bog conditions, Calopogons like swamps. Cypripedium reginae likes almost swamp conditions/wetlands.

Now do they ALL require a cold spell to bloom? I always thought so!!
…. until I brought a small plant which had come up in our small bog outside, over the Winter inside. I kept it under the Vandas ( warm) flooded it daily ( it was potted up in Peatmoss), and wouldn't you know it bloomed beautiful last Fall around the same time my much stunted looking Spiranthes odorata outside were in bloom. You might remember that one
http://garden.org/thread/view_...
In the meanwhile I had to switch to a larger pot and there are now a bunch of good looking plants growing . So, last Fall I moved the miserable looking leftover Spiranthes also to a pot in Canadian Peatmoss and they look now much better than they ever did growing outside year around. It will be interesting if those bloom too after being treated like a tropical terrestrial.

Regarding the Calanthe Kozu growing in the cage - it was well mulched in the Fall, and - after this exceptionally cold Winter, the plant did come back, but for the first time since I planted it, it did not bloom.

We need to ask someone who took as an example Cyp acaules inside and attempted to grow them potted up, as they do show up like that at some orchid shows. How low does the temperature need to go in the Winter for them to bloom? Is 35 degr F sufficient, or does it have to be frost. I don't know.

Floridians, how well do Bletillas for you outside?

I have grown Bletillas outside all summer and they do fine. Most, however, don't come back the next spring. I conceder them an annual. Spathoglottis do fine unless we get a rare cold snap which they do not handle well. Here it is a fifty/fifty shot with them. Phaius, Epis and Cyms do much better.

Jim

So you would think the Bletillas need the chill!
I was amazed how well they came through our cold Winter here, better than ever.

Yes, they must need the chill.

Jim

I had some Bletillas in a pot on the porch that came back for one or two years, then croaked. Andy has some in the ground, and I'm sure it never gets down to freezing there. Mine were protected from rain, while his wouldn't have been. So I'm still at a loss as to what they need.
I find this really confusing. Fla. gets more freezes that we ever do, but Jim's plants are under the oak trees, so get some protection. We get down to 32 about once every 5 years, but only briefly. We haven't had enough to damage tropicals for about 7 or 8 years. Hmm, maybe that's when my Bletillas came back.

Perhaps the key is not growing in a pot, Andy's are in the ground. If they are in the ground, they should be alright with lots of rain.
Now around here - years ago I tried to grow them in the yard, then one year in a pot and didn't succeed. The only way they took off for me and really multiplied was when I planted them right against the sunny South facing house wall.
Goldilocks? Just the right amount of cold, sunshine and moisture.

My Bletilla are all in the ground, get about 2 hours of midday sun and they come back every year and multiply like crazy .. except for the ochracea. It seems a bit more delicate than the striata. Their normal bloom time here is late February to late March.

I'm totally new to ground orchids so I'm looking forward to learning about them in this thread! I also have some Spathoglottis and can't wait until they start blooming. Do they require a cold period?

Do you leave your Spathoglottis out all year, Anne? Are they in the ground or in pots?

They are in pots and received them last fall. They were kept in the greenhouse over the winter where the temperature was kept to upper 30's to low 40's at night. They all put out new leaves for about a month then the leaves totally disappeared until around late March.

Elaine (and Jim?) usually post these growing outside!

My only personal experience/observation is limited to seeing them in gardens and pots on vacation in tropical regions. ( Cambodia and Thailand comes to mind.)

Sppathoglottis plicattas are what you get if you ask for a ground orchid at a big box store. I have also found them in Apopka for a song. I plant them in a pot in a mix of planting soil, orchid bark and perlite and set them out under an oak tree. I give them a little Osmocote every couple of months and spray them with the hose if necessary. I usually get two to three years out of them.

Jim

Perhaps Spathoglottis is simply not well-suited to being brought in for the winter. IF you can only keep them alive for 2-3 years, living in a sub-tropical climate, I doubt I have much chance with them. And I haven't been successful growing them. Once these are gone, I won't have any more. Failure is a great teacher!

I've divided some of the pots of Spathoglottis from H D and that seems to rejuvenate them. The multicolor ones I got in Apopka took a year to start blooming but seem to have bloomed nontop for a couple of years now.

I do protect them if it's getting below 50 at night. I don't think they need a chill, it just sets them back.

Oh yes, and they get full sun in winter, but only half day morning sun March through October..

I'm still wondering why none of the growers here even list Spaths! I thought it might be our lack of humidity, but most of the Ca. growers are within a couple blocks of the ocean.

A friend gave us one of these some years back and insisted on planting it in what she assured me was just the perfect spot following all the instructions in the little booklet that came with it. It was just before I did a nosedive with my health, and when I was able to track it again, it had disappeared.

I am wondering if they need a lime-rich soil? Ours is extremely acid, which is good for some things, but death for others. That is one detail that seems to be missing in the plant profile listings -- yet one which can be crucial, at least in some cases.

I've thought of replacing this one day, but until I know why the one planted with all the correct light, mulch, etc. etc. didn't make it, I'm not in a hurry to plead for that big a dent in the landscaping budget. Any thoughts on this from anyone?

Thanks.
Mother Raphaela