Orchid prop

 This is the temperary residence of the majority of my orchids, along with other plants. I hope to rearrange them and put some on a pot stand and others on a trelice on the wall of the garage. When I've made the change, I'll update with photos.

What a stunner!!

 

This is my stunningly beautiful phaleanopsis which I bought at the supermarket at half the original price!! Another bargain!! It is so full of buds, and now they are opening up, everyday there's one more!!

2 July 2012. This orchid is in full bloom now. All the flowers have opened. No sign of them withering yet.

More updates soon! 

   

Dendrobium Cutting

 This is a photo of a cutting I was given by a friend of a Dendrobium. She called it "olho-de-boneca", which means Doll's Eyes. Here is a photo of when I got it home and put it in a pot.

And here is a photo of the Dendrobium today, 7th June 2012. It is showing signs of growth and that it's settling into it's new home.

2 July 2012. There is news on the growth of this Dendrobium. There is a tiny little buldge on the base of the pseudobulb with leaves, which looks like will be a new pseudobulb. It's a sign that it's settling in to it's new home.

New updates soon.

Cattleya

I bought this from an orchidary. I believe it is a Cattleya, but I'm not absolutely sure.

It has some good growth coming on both sides. We'll just have to wait to see what comes!

2 July 2012. This is definately a Cattleya, as I found out with the help of Cynthia who left a comment. It now has new growth and is doing well in the garage.

Updates to come soon.

Unknown Orchids - Epidendrum

I bought these orchids from a garden nursery. They were going cheap, so I took them on to see what would happen. The problem is, I don't know what orchids they are. Are they orchids which go in the ground? Do they want full sun, half-shade? Do they like lots of water or little water? What substrata do they like?

I repotted them, because they looked like they were a bit potbound. Plus, my dog decided to investigate them, and ended up taking one out of its pot, so she did half the job for me!!

If anyone could help me with the name and type of orchid, if it is an orchid at all, I would really appreciate it!!

More info when I see any improvement.

Hi! Today is 2nd July. I went to the local orchid nursery and took this orchid for them to identify for me. It is an Epidendrum. It had some treatment from the nursery, cut off the dead bits and sprinkled cinamon powder over the cut places and at the base of the plant. Now they are in the garage drying out, because they were too wet. That's why the leaves were going black and rotting.

It did have a couple of new shoots, but one a slug ate and the other had a bit of black rot and was cut back. Now we have to wait to see what the results of the treatment are like.

Updates soon!! 

Baby Phaleanopsis

This is my baby phal. Its name is Phaleanopsis Salmão. The flowers will be a pinky, orangey salmon colour.

This also came in a substrata of polystyrene. I repotted it in the proper substrata for orchids, and now it's roots are aired, but protected. It's looking happy, with good root growth and the leaves are getting bigger.

2 July 2012. This little phal has a new leaf growing happily.

More updates soon.

 

Baby Cymbidiums

 These are my new baby Cymbidiums. I bought each one for R$5,00. I recently repotted them, as they came with substrata of polystyrene balls and were drying out too quickly. They are now in substrata consisting of pine bark, coconut fibre and charcoal.

This one's called Cymbidium Laranja. The flowers will be orangey, yellow with red spots in the middle.

This one is called Cymbidium Ouro. The flowers will be a light goldy yellow with red spots in the middle.

This one is called Cymbidium Roxo. The flowers will be a lovely moavey purple with a creamy centre.

2 July 2012. I realized that Cimbidiums are terrestrial orchids and like a bit of normal soil. So, I moved them into the backyard and put a bit of compost in around the orquid substrata. It looked like they were getting too hot in the garage. They tend to like shadier, cooler environments.

More updates soon.

Orchids on the line

This is a photo of my orchids which I tied onto bits of wood and hung on my washing line at the back of my house.

 This one was originally in the garage, but it got attacked by some ugly slugs, which only left one leaf. So, once I had done away with the slugs, I took the orchid out of its pot and washed it thoroughly and tied it onto a piece of wood and waited to see what would happen.

A few months later, with it being watered naturally by the rain, look at the new growth that has appeared!

I hope it grows well and rewards me with new leaves, and eventually, flowers. There is another shoot on the other side of the orchid. Looking good!

Other orchids on the wood are:

 

 A cymbidium, of which I don't know the colour. These photos were taken a couple of months ago.

The photo taken today, 7th June 2012, shows new growth.

 I also have an oncidium, locally called "chuva-de-ouro", which is coming on well, too.

 New photos will come when I have chance to get a good shot. Today it's raining!

This is another oncidium which I won as a freebe at an orchid exhibition. It is also showing new growth. I will update with new photos as soon as possible.

2 July 2012. The cymbidium was doing ok, but its roots were drying out too much, so I took it off the wood and put it in a pot with a mixture of soil and orquid substrata. It seems to be better now.

More updates soon.


  

Orchid cuttings and development

 I was given a couple of orchid cuttings by a friend.

 

One of these orchids, pictured in the photo above, came with a pest called "conchilhas" in Portuguese.

So, I washed it with coconut soap, and made an "Intencive Care Unit" from a transparent plastic bottle.

Here is the photo of the orchid in the ICU. Now I have to wait to see if it will pick up. This method provides a closed climate, in which the orchid is protected and has a better chance of recovery and to reestablish its root system.

To know how to make the ICU, follow the link:

http://cynthiablanco.blogspot.com.br/2011/07/sos-uti-para-orquideas.html

This blog by Cynthia is very informative and has helped me to understand my plants better, and to know how to give them better care and attention.

Another orchid which I was given as a cutting is this one:

 

I don't know what orchid this is. Unfortunatly, it wasn't getting on very well in its pot, so I made another ICU for it. Here is the photo of the poor thing in the plastic bottle. Its large leaf yellowed and fell off, so now it just has the smaller stumpy leaf. I hope it will react well to the treatment.

2 July 2012. The orchids have been in their bottles of a month, and the only thing that was happening is the pseudobulbs were starting to brown off at the base. So, I took them out of their bottles to dry off a little. The first cattleya I've put on a piece of wood and the second is hanging from the washing line to dry out more. I'll also put the second on a piece of wood to see if it improves.

More updates soon!