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The sanderianum Chronicles Part 1 (was deflasking paphs
Hello,
Congrats on your purchase of sanderianum seedlings! I posted this on the AOS forum a couple of weeks ago complete with photos documenting my first purchase of sanderianum and the compotting process. Hope it helps. Before you read, two things that have happened since this post, 1. I sprayed all the seedlings with a light dose of Physan 20 after some brown spots developed, 2. I have backed off using the baggie treatment for a few days until the spot issue is resolved. otherwise, here goes with links to photos as I go along... The sanderianum Chronicles Part 1- The Arrival This afternoon a small box was delivered to my desk at work. My co-workers were intrigued to know how 100+ baby orchids fit in such a small box, and my curiosity was quite beyond normal bounds as well- so we took a peek. And what a marvel these little plants were. Meticulous is what I would call them. Perfect. Not a leaf out of place. Needless to say, Sam Tsui's reputation for impeccable plants is well deserved. Each deflasked set of plants had been gently wrapped in two paper towels. Then this had been set in an upside down styrofoam "to go" container (pint sized) with the plastic lid serving as the base. Not a scratch or break on a single leaf. The plants were perfect. Here is a photo of the sanderianum flask immediately after unpacking, http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/01.jpg Here is a side view of one of the PEOY flasks http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/02.jpg And here is a top view of one of the PEOY flasks http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/03.jpg The first thing that struck me about these flasks was how perfectly manageable the plants appeared. This assessment proved accurate during the compotting process. In fact, I would go so far as to say it is EASIER to manage these plants than many other Paphs. Just to give you an idea, here is a shot of a sukhakulii flask that has been in compot for about 4 weeks now. Take a look at how tall some of these plants are and you will get a vision of why they are much more annoying to deal with LOL. http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/19.jpg When I received my Antec flasks, I used the Wellenstein's method of potting with the agar intact and it has proven successful. However I was reluctant to use that same method here for two reasons. First, Orchid Inn does not use this method, and so I was not sure if their agar was designed for being potted with the plants. There was also quite a bit more agar on these plants- which I felt would take too long to wash off. Second, because of the high humidity needs of sanderianum and PEOY, I intend to keep these in partially sealed ziplock bags for several weeks, gradually acclimating them to my home environment and the humidity provisions I have prepared. Even with minimal watering, the potting mix will tend to stay very damp under these conditions. And I was afraid too much agar would promote excess fungus and also perhaps rot the roots. So I have instead opted to go the middle road here. Most of the agar was removed, but I left perhaps 10-15% of it intact around the roots to provide a bit of added nutrition in the first weeks. I feel it will provide some benefit, but also not trap excess moisture in the potting medium during the first few weeks. To achieve this, the flasks were placed in a dish of warm water as seen below, http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/04.jpg Once placed in this warm water, I gently swirled the flasks to loosen the larger chunks of agar- especially the large sections around the edges that arise from the shape of the Ehrlemeyer flasks used by Orchid Inn. I next each flask gently in my hand and ran warm water down the side of the bottom of the agar, working it loose gently with my fingers to remove all but the small sections trapped by the densest root areas. In this way, the flasks remained 80-90% intact with only a few stray plants, and only a very few roots were broken and lost- perhaps 4-5 total out of the 4 flasks. My goal was to create two compots from each flask- both of them fairly densely concentrated. So I tried to work the plants so that the thickest "crescent" shape section around each flask edge would come loose, leaving a rounder off center section of about equal size as follows, http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/05.jpg And a detail of the rounder section, http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/06.jpg One note before we go further, I am a great believer in the compot stage and I like to keep things in compot a very long time. My goal here was to keep the plants somewhat close together to gain the benefits of community growth. Then in 3-5 months I plan to re-plant these compots into mini-compots of 5-6 plants each for another year or so. As such, I do not have a need to space the plants at this time. I also like this method since it leaves a good wide ring of potting mix between the plants and the edge of the pot. Growing in the home and working full time, I do not always have a chance to water in the morning by hand. So this allows me to water in the evening when necessary without getting a lot of water in the crowns of the plants that might not dry out before the plant lights go off in the evening. So far, this approach has proven successful with my Antec compots. All you have to do is give a good watering around the edges, keeping the compot tilted so that water goes to the center, and you are set. Next the potting process. Here is a shot of my chosen medium. This is a homemade mix of fine fir bark, large perlite, and crushed peat moss. The mix is about 4:4:1 respectively. The bark and perlite allow for good drainage and the peat helps keep things slightly moist. I have good humidity here- being in Houston- but the lights I use (Sol lamps in 48 inch tubes, four per shelf) tend to dry growing media very rapidly. This is a new mix for me and is working well so far, but I am definitely still in experiment stage with it. http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/07.jpg For the compots, I am using 4 inch plastic azalea pots. To start I have added peanuts to the bottom half of each pot. With the agar partially intact, and since this compot stage will only be for 3-5 months, I want to keep the growing medium layer fairly thin to help regulate moisture better. http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/08.jpg http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/09.jpg Next comes the mix. I made this up 4 weeks ago, so the bark is still water retentive, but the peat moss needs a good wetting. I thus place the base layer in the pot and then water it heavily under the tap to get the peat good and moist. It also makes the surface very flat and ideal for placing the plants, http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/10.jpg Once this is complete, I have next added the split compots in the center, doing a little spacing to give the plants more room while keeping that ring around the edge. This ring of medium around the edge is also a good place for stragglers. A couple of small plants have minimal roots, and I like to put them on the edges kind of by themselves. Then I know where they are and can apply a small mist of water daily to the potting mix right where these little guys are. It ensures they get the water they need without me having to risk overwatering the larger plants with agar still attached. Since I have removed most of the agar, filling in the spaces between each plant is important, so in the spacing process I add mix by hand here and there- sometimes just a piece of bark or two- to ensure all the roots are covered. This gets a bit messy as you can see here, http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/11.jpg Next, a good thorough watering all over the surface of the plants. This is intended as the only major watering these plants will get for at least a week since the humidity treatment in bags will keep the medium wet. It is also the time to make sure those bits of mix put between the plants will settle down to the base of the plants and not strangle any smaller plants. Further, it removes any dust or mix that is resting on the leaves. After this process, a careful check is made to remove the occasional piece of bark covering a plant, or to even gently lift a plant into a better position. Here is the final outcome, http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/12.jpg Next, the compots are placed right in front of a small fan on low speed. This is to ensure the leaf surfaces and crowns are cleared of standing water before the plants go into their tents for the next 6-8 weeks. If I had been able to pot these in the morning, this would not have been necessary. But since it is nearly bedtime around here, I have to be sure the plant leaves are dry before the lights go out. The sanderianum compots are the two closest to the fan. The rest are PEOY (don't worry, I'm gonna label them next! LOL- no need to say another word along those lines.) This process goes on for about 30-40 minutes until the crowns of the plants and leaves have no standing water. A single drop of water on plants these small can completely smother a crown. http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/17.jpg Once the seedling leaves and crowns dried, I went back and gently watered one more time around the edge of the compot only. This is also a good time to take a paper towel and gently touch it to stubborn water drops to remove them from plant leaves, and make sure one last time that no plants are smothered under a piece of bark (I did find one I had missed before- and someday that little plant may reward me by winning an FCC and then dying before I can get a good division.) Again this sounds nitpicky, but it is taking advantage of the benefits of being a home grower on a small scale. We don't have the RO watered greenhouse temperature controlled to a tenth of a degree, so we gotta find our advantage elsewhere! Finally, the compots are placed in one gallon Hefty Bags. I paired them off save for two large PEOY compots that needed to go solo. It is important, IMHO anyway, to be sure the plant leaves do not touch the surfaces of the baggies. Within 30 minutes, the plants will be difficult to see courtesy of the moisture accumulation on the inside surfaces of the bag. Once inside the bags, just close almost all the way, blow them up to fill with air, seal and there you go. I will leave these sealed overnight and then open them slightly while I am off at work tomorrow. http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/20.jpg Right now the compots are 18 inches away from the lights. In about 4-6 weeks they will be placed 12 inches from the lights. Over the next 6-8 weeks I will gradually wean them from their plastic bags- sooner if I think I can get away with it. Then it will be time for seedling heat mats, water in gravel for humidity- and update #2! Here, for now, are the plants in their home for the next couple of months, http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/21.jpg And what would any good story be without the Hail Mary Pass, the Hollywood underdog? Here is a small protocorm mass that was hiding in one of the flasks. I have placed it on NZ Sphag and sealed it in an old candy container. It will remain sealed until roots form. Seems like a long shot, but if just three plants emerge from this little green ball, in one year they could pay for the whole flask (eBay anyone!) No need to waste any chances at this level LOL. http://members.aol.com/elpaninaro/22.jpg Thanks for reading and have fun! And for goodness sake, if you have done this before and are smacking the table right now at something I have done wrong- speak up! You just might save me from disaster. These little plants are so adorable right now, I am not sure I want them to grow up and flower! |
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The sanderianum Chronicles Part 1 (was deflasking paphs
Very informative and interesting and sounds easy enough for -me- to do.
Thank you for a well illustrated "how-to"! -- Fran Kirby Jacksonville, Florida : The sanderianum Chronicles Part 1- The Arrival : : This afternoon a small box was delivered to my desk at work. My co-workers were : intrigued to know how 100+ baby orchids fit in such a small box, and my : curiosity was quite beyond normal bounds as well- so we took ...... |
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