The other day a neighbor of mine whom I had not met before came over with a
dendrobium that stopped flowering, and she said that since she has seen all
the orchids in my windows, she was wondering if I would be interested in
taking it, since she does not want to keep it any more. I explained to her
that I had never had a dendrobium before, and thus was not sure whether it
would do well in my care. But she said that she did not mind, so I accepted
it.

It's tag just says Dendrobium, so I assume that it is one of the most
popular types of dendrobiums. Is it most likely to be a Phalaenopsis type
dendrobium?

I extracted the dendrobium briefly from it's pot to look at the condition of
the roots and medium, and both looked ok for now, so I just plopped it back
into the pot. Since it is in bark, and I am not good at assessing watering
needs in bark, that will be a bit of a challenge for me. Could I just look
at the wrinkliness of one of the newer pseudobulbs to assess when this
dendrobium needs watering? That's what I do with the two mini-catts that I
have. I look at the pseudobulb that has flowered most recently, and if it
starts wrinkling, I water. The mini-catts seem to be doing ok with this
treatment.

I intend to treat it overall like my Phals but try to provide it a bit more
light and try to water it a bit less frequently, and we shall see whether it
will make it in my care or not. Any other adjustments that I need to make
from Phal conditions?

Thanks,
Joanna

Hi, Joanna,

Dends are very different from Phals as far as their needs are concerned.
Like you, I have no *feel* for bark. I have never been able to master the
art of watering properly when using bark, so I just don't use it.

We grow our Dends outside, and some of them are in plain old pebbles, but
for indoor growing you might want to use Aliflor or another fired clay
medium, as it is no doubt more dry inside than it is for us here in FL. I
have not tried a Dend in S/H culture, but maybe Ray will weigh in on that
possiblity.

Bottom line: Dends need much less water than Phals, but a good deal more
light. Catt light is good. I find that our Dends are happy in near full sun.

Good luck with the new orchid!

Diana

"Diana Kulaga" wrote in message
...
Bottom line: Dends need much less water than Phals, but a good deal more
light. Catt light is good. I find that our Dends are happy in near full
sun.

Well, in that case I am in trouble since I have only a limited amount of
light available, nowhere near catt light and definitely not full sun.

If a Dend won't be happy enough with just a bit more light than a Phal, I
wonder whether I shouldn't pass the Dend along further to someone who can
provide it the proper conditions. One option: as I was going for a walk with
Robert in our condo complex I saw a place where there were 4 healthy looking
dendrobiums on a patio -- the weather has been nice and warm here recently,
and that patio had much more sun than our extremely shaded one. I had the
naughty thought that it might be fun to take this dendrobium, and just leave
it on this person's patio, sort of like a cuckoo's egg. :-) Of course I
could also do the same thing as the neighbor who brought it over to me, and
wait for a weekend when the dendrobium patio people are in. Hmm, less fun,
but probably the more correct action.

Or I could try to keep the dendrobium, and see what happens with it, but I
definitely cannot provide it much more light -- at most medium light, but
not high light conditions.

Joanna

Try it for a while and see what happens. If you get weak spindly growths,
then pass it on to someone else. If you get nice healthy growths then keep
it, even if you don't have the optimum amount of light you may still get
some flowers out of it eventually. Don't be afraid to try a new genus in
your collection. You may not always be successful but you'll never really
know what you can grow until you try some different stuff.
-danny

"J Fortuna" wrote in message
news:5gLRf.7936$%e1.4664@trnddc05...
"Diana Kulaga" wrote in message
...
Bottom line: Dends need much less water than Phals, but a good deal more
light. Catt light is good. I find that our Dends are happy in near full
sun.

Well, in that case I am in trouble since I have only a limited amount of
light available, nowhere near catt light and definitely not full sun.

If a Dend won't be happy enough with just a bit more light than a Phal, I
wonder whether I shouldn't pass the Dend along further to someone who can
provide it the proper conditions. One option: as I was going for a walk
with Robert in our condo complex I saw a place where there were 4 healthy
looking dendrobiums on a patio -- the weather has been nice and warm here
recently, and that patio had much more sun than our extremely shaded one.
I had the naughty thought that it might be fun to take this dendrobium,
and just leave it on this person's patio, sort of like a cuckoo's egg. :-)
Of course I could also do the same thing as the neighbor who brought it
over to me, and wait for a weekend when the dendrobium patio people are
in. Hmm, less fun, but probably the more correct action.

Or I could try to keep the dendrobium, and see what happens with it, but I
definitely cannot provide it much more light -- at most medium light, but
not high light conditions.

Joanna

Joanna, just out of curiosity, could you post a pic of the plant? Just so we
can make a ballpark guess on which group of dendrobes it might belong to.

On Wed, 15 Mar 2006 00:47:52 GMT, "J Fortuna"
wrote:

The other day a neighbor of mine whom I had not met before came over with a
dendrobium that stopped flowering, and she said that since she has seen all
the orchids in my windows, she was wondering if I would be interested in
taking it, since she does not want to keep it any more. I explained to her
that I had never had a dendrobium before, and thus was not sure whether it
would do well in my care. But she said that she did not mind, so I accepted
it.

It's tag just says Dendrobium, so I assume that it is one of the most
popular types of dendrobiums. Is it most likely to be a Phalaenopsis type
dendrobium?

I extracted the dendrobium briefly from it's pot to look at the condition of
the roots and medium, and both looked ok for now, so I just plopped it back
into the pot. Since it is in bark, and I am not good at assessing watering
needs in bark, that will be a bit of a challenge for me. Could I just look
at the wrinkliness of one of the newer pseudobulbs to assess when this
dendrobium needs watering? That's what I do with the two mini-catts that I
have. I look at the pseudobulb that has flowered most recently, and if it
starts wrinkling, I water. The mini-catts seem to be doing ok with this
treatment.

I intend to treat it overall like my Phals but try to provide it a bit more
light and try to water it a bit less frequently, and we shall see whether it
will make it in my care or not. Any other adjustments that I need to make
from Phal conditions?

Thanks,
Joanna

Dave Gillingham
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To email me remove the .private from my email address.

In article 5gLRf.7936$%e1.4664@trnddc05,
says...
~"Diana Kulaga" wrote in message
...
~ Bottom line: Dends need much less water than Phals, but a good deal more
~ light. Catt light is good. I find that our Dends are happy in near full
~ sun.
~
~Well, in that case I am in trouble since I have only a limited amount of
~light available, nowhere near catt light and definitely not full sun.
~
~If a Dend won't be happy enough with just a bit more light than a Phal, I
~wonder whether I shouldn't pass the Dend along further to someone who can
~provide it the proper conditions. One option: as I was going for a walk with
~Robert in our condo complex I saw a place where there were 4 healthy looking
~dendrobiums on a patio -- the weather has been nice and warm here recently,
~and that patio had much more sun than our extremely shaded one. I had the
~naughty thought that it might be fun to take this dendrobium, and just leave
~it on this person's patio, sort of like a cuckoo's egg. :-) Of course I
~could also do the same thing as the neighbor who brought it over to me, and
~wait for a weekend when the dendrobium patio people are in. Hmm, less fun,
~but probably the more correct action.
~
~Or I could try to keep the dendrobium, and see what happens with it, but I
~definitely cannot provide it much more light -- at most medium light, but
~not high light conditions.
~
~Joanna
~
~
~
Joanna, I would keep it. It would bloom better with more light, but it
*will* bloom in higher Phal light. Just try to keep it in the sunniest
spot. As you say, it is probably a hybrid, and those are generally bred to
do well in less fortunate conditions.


--
Reka

This is LIFE! It's not a rehearsal. Don't miss it!
http://www.rolbox.it/hukari/index.html

J Fortuna wrote:

.............
It's tag just says Dendrobium, so I assume that it is one of the most
popular types of dendrobiums. Is it most likely to be a Phalaenopsis type
dendrobium?
....................
........................ Could I just look
at the wrinkliness of one of the newer pseudobulbs to assess when this
dendrobium needs watering? That's what I do with the two mini-catts that I
have. I look at the pseudobulb that has flowered most recently, and if it
starts wrinkling, I water. .........................

Let me reply to these two parts.

Look at where the old, dried inflorescences are located. Are they all
located at the top of the cane or at least very close to the top? If you
can answer yes to that, well that's good news for you. Phal type
Dendrobiums WILL bloom with lower light than some of the other
Dendrobiums. It would need no more light than your mini-catts most likely.
............................
In my opinion, if you wait to see the new pseudobulbs get wrinkly, the
plant has already been too dry for a few days. This is true on the
mini-catts too. Rather than let them wrinkle every time, you should use
the wrinkles as your clue that you should water more often. Water on a
schedule that just barely keeps the pseudobulbs plump.

Grow that Dendrobium! I want to see the flowers. :-)

Steve

Look at the pseudobulbs. If it is a Phalaenopsis type, you will find a few old flower stalks at the top of the pseudobulbs. If you find many stalks running down the top 2/3rds, it will be a Nobile type.

Happy growing,
Weng

Steve and Weng,
Yes, all the old inflorescences are coming from the top, so I guess I am
lucky, and it is a Phal type dendrobium most likely. I will try to adjust my
watering schedule for both the mini-catts and the dendrobium.
Thanks,
Joanna

"Weng" wrote in message
...

J Fortuna Wrote:

It's tag just says Dendrobium, so I assume that it is one of the most
popular types of dendrobiums. Is it most likely to be a Phalaenopsis
type
dendrobium?

Look at the pseudobulbs. If it is a Phalaenopsis type, you will find a
few old flower stalks at the top of the pseudobulbs. If you find many
stalks running down the top 2/3rds, it will be a Nobile type.

Happy growing,
Weng


--
Weng

Dave,
The leaves appear to be all in the top third. I will try to take a photo
someday, but I have not been feeling well these past few days, so this will
need to be postponed a bit.
Thanks, Joanna

"Dave Gillingham" wrote in message
...
Joanna, next question - are the leaves all on the top third, or do they
grow for
more than half the length of the pseudobulb? I'm thinking of the
difference
between phalaenanthe (bigibbum/phalaenopsis etc) & spatulata (the curly
petals
of the discolor etc group). That's why I suggested a photo of the plant
growth
habit.

On Thu, 16 Mar 2006 07:35:59 GMT, "J Fortuna"

wrote:

Steve and Weng,
Yes, all the old inflorescences are coming from the top, so I guess I am
lucky, and it is a Phal type dendrobium most likely. I will try to adjust
my
watering schedule for both the mini-catts and the dendrobium.
Thanks,
Joanna

"Weng" wrote in message
...

J Fortuna Wrote:

It's tag just says Dendrobium, so I assume that it is one of the most
popular types of dendrobiums. Is it most likely to be a Phalaenopsis
type
dendrobium?

Look at the pseudobulbs. If it is a Phalaenopsis type, you will find a
few old flower stalks at the top of the pseudobulbs. If you find many
stalks running down the top 2/3rds, it will be a Nobile type.

Happy growing,
Weng


--
Weng

Dave Gillingham
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To email me remove the .private from my email address.