"Gene Schurg" wrote in message
news
Just reading the Paph sanderianum thread someone mentioned that it is
recommended that the runts in a flask should be thrown away.

When I grow garden plants I do this because the seed is cheap and I don't
care to find the special new petunia that happens to be the tiny plant.

If I were growing orchids from seed and wanted that new breakthrough plant
that was smaller, or a different color, or bloomed on a naturally smaller
plant, etc. could it be found among these runts?

What do some of you folks who grow from seed think about this?


Good Growing,
Gene

I think it depends on the size of your growing space. Like Jerry said,
you stop when you have "enough". I have a large greenhouse (about 3000 sq
ft) and am constantly buying or making flasks or compots. I'm not commercial
(use to be, but that's another story). But when you have flats of compots
waiting, and you have 4-6" pots that have bloomed of a number of crosses or
species, you've picked what you like best and sold or given gifts of others,
and you still have more, you've got to start tossing or build another
greenhouse. I've also made custom hangers to hang extras everywhere I can
reach with water and fertilizer for those I'm not certain I want to toss
yet. This may seem like heresy to anyone with a smaller growing area who
doesn't grow flasks or compots. But the idea is the same - you grow what you
have room for and there's never enough room. Such is the dilemma of the
orchidphile.