Milt and Florida Growing
 

Hello All

My wife recently purchased a miltoniopsis orchid - Milt. Kelly
Barfiled 'MKO' - in bloom at the local Lowes. She's not owned one
before. It appears to be a healthy plant It is the "pansy" type.

She put it out on our pool deck area (in central Florida) with her
Phil. collection.

WIthin in 2-3 days, the flowers wilted and the leaves sagged. We've
since brought it in doors and the leaves seemed to have perked up.

Is this an orchid that can do well outdoors in Florida or do we need
to keep it out of the heat?

Any thoughts / expoeriences appreciated.

Duane

Milt and Florida Growing
 

Miltoniopsis in general appreciate cooler conditions. Having said that
there are any number of warm tolerant Miltonopsis hybrids out there. Not
taking the time to investigate your hybrid's specific background makes any
comment I could make almost meaningless, however that won't stop me, LOL!

I've had trouble here in California keeping these moist enough and humid
enough. I doubt you'd encounter either of these 'problems' in Florida. I
agree with our surmise that the outdoor heat was too much for it or too much
for it all at once, and a period of acclimation may be required before you
try putting it outdoors next year, if it lasts until next year. I say that
not becasue of anything you or your wife have done or will do to the plant,
just that many times these 'box store' orchids are 'forced' into bloom, and
take some time to recover, if ever they do. In other words its not your
fault if it dies.

Speaking very generally I've found that Miltoniopsis like to be repotted
into fresh mix annually. They don't like salts accumulating at the roots.
They like to be pot bound. and they like a certain amount of light in order
to bloom. They like to be evenly moist. Not soaking wet. Not soaking wet
then allowed to dry completely. Evenly moist. And that's my trouble with
them. I let them dry too much. They linger and fail to bloom.... hmmmmm,
are you sure you want to take advice from me???

Personally, I'd do just what you did. Take it inside, keep it from drafts
from the A/C and heat (since hopefully you'll have it into the winter) put
it in a place where it gets bright indirect light and see what happens.
Feed with half strength plant food.

If anyone else has any input I'm all ears too!

K Barrett

"eddie rukidding" wrote in message
...
Hello All

My wife recently purchased a miltoniopsis orchid - Milt. Kelly
Barfiled 'MKO' - in bloom at the local Lowes. She's not owned one
before. It appears to be a healthy plant It is the "pansy" type.

She put it out on our pool deck area (in central Florida) with her
Phil. collection.

WIthin in 2-3 days, the flowers wilted and the leaves sagged. We've
since brought it in doors and the leaves seemed to have perked up.

Is this an orchid that can do well outdoors in Florida or do we need
to keep it out of the heat?

Any thoughts / expoeriences appreciated.

Duane

Milt and Florida Growing
 

What she said. Plus: though there are indeed some Miltoniopsis that are warm
tolerant, as a Floridian I can't be bothered to look for them because there
are so many orchids that are better suited to our climate. Why mess with
something that will require extra care? I know some people who grow cooler
types, like standard Cyms, but they go so far as to use ice to regulate the
temperature. Doesn't sound like fun to me! I assisted in the suicide of one
Milt. when I first began growing orchids, so I stay away from them, along
with Zygos and such.

Also, *warm tolerant* doesn't necessarily mean *Florida warm* tolerant. It
can get awfully hot here at times, and more so in the center of the state
than here nearer to the coast.

Diana

"K Barrett" wrote in message
. ..
Miltoniopsis in general appreciate cooler conditions. Having said that
there are any number of warm tolerant Miltonopsis hybrids out there. Not
taking the time to investigate your hybrid's specific background makes any
comment I could make almost meaningless, however that won't stop me, LOL!

I've had trouble here in California keeping these moist enough and humid
enough. I doubt you'd encounter either of these 'problems' in Florida. I
agree with our surmise that the outdoor heat was too much for it or too
much for it all at once, and a period of acclimation may be required
before you try putting it outdoors next year, if it lasts until next year.
I say that not becasue of anything you or your wife have done or will do
to the plant, just that many times these 'box store' orchids are 'forced'
into bloom, and take some time to recover, if ever they do. In other words
its not your fault if it dies.

Speaking very generally I've found that Miltoniopsis like to be repotted
into fresh mix annually. They don't like salts accumulating at the roots.
They like to be pot bound. and they like a certain amount of light in
order to bloom. They like to be evenly moist. Not soaking wet. Not
soaking wet then allowed to dry completely. Evenly moist. And that's my
trouble with them. I let them dry too much. They linger and fail to
bloom.... hmmmmm, are you sure you want to take advice from me???

Personally, I'd do just what you did. Take it inside, keep it from drafts
from the A/C and heat (since hopefully you'll have it into the winter) put
it in a place where it gets bright indirect light and see what happens.
Feed with half strength plant food.

If anyone else has any input I'm all ears too!

K Barrett

"eddie rukidding" wrote in message
...
Hello All

My wife recently purchased a miltoniopsis orchid - Milt. Kelly
Barfiled 'MKO' - in bloom at the local Lowes. She's not owned one
before. It appears to be a healthy plant It is the "pansy" type.

She put it out on our pool deck area (in central Florida) with her
Phil. collection.

WIthin in 2-3 days, the flowers wilted and the leaves sagged. We've
since brought it in doors and the leaves seemed to have perked up.

Is this an orchid that can do well outdoors in Florida or do we need
to keep it out of the heat?

Any thoughts / expoeriences appreciated.

Duane

Milt and Florida Growing
 

Thank you both for your replies -

Sounds like we've made an impulse buy that will have to be kept in the
house if it is to make it at all. Live and learn.

The University of Florida IFAS ( http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/EP017 )
recommends Cattleya , Phalaenopsis , Dendrobium , Oncidium , Vanda and
Epidendrum for Florida growing.

Are there any other "DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME" types we should avoid
here?

Thanks to all again!

Duane

Milt and Florida Growing
 

Vandaceous takes in a big list of plants, Duane (Duane Eddie?? LOL).
Angraecums, Aerides and more are part of the tribe. And add Encyclias to
your list of can do orchids for FL. There are more, but at the moment my
brain is not working at full strength. I don't know how far into the
addiction you are, but lots of hybrids fill the bill, too.

Also, good to remember that within the various categories there can be
species that are cool growing. You can get lots of info on culture needs via
Google, and for species try www.orchidspecies.com .

Diana

"eddie rukidding" wrote in message
...
Thank you both for your replies -

Sounds like we've made an impulse buy that will have to be kept in the
house if it is to make it at all. Live and learn.

The University of Florida IFAS ( http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/EP017 )
recommends Cattleya , Phalaenopsis , Dendrobium , Oncidium , Vanda and
Epidendrum for Florida growing.

Are there any other "DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME" types we should avoid
here?

Thanks to all again!

Duane

Milt and Florida Growing
 

"eddie rukidding" wrote in message

...



Thank you both for your replies -

Sounds like we've made an impulse buy that will have to be kept in the
house if it is to make it at all. Live and learn.

The University of Florida IFAS (http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/EP017)
recommends Cattleya , Phalaenopsis , Dendrobium , Oncidium , Vanda and
Epidendrum for Florida growing.

Are there any other "DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME" types we should avoid
here?

Thanks to all again!

Duane- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

And what they said - plus,

I live in Philadelphia, Pa - it gets warm here ... perhaps not quite
what a Floridian would call warm but ... anyway I also can't get
Miltoniopsis to last more than about 18 months. Wilsonara, a hybrid,
isn't a good choice either. IMHO
Masdevallia, Dracula, and many, but by no means all, Pleurothallis are
cool growing too. I have read - and the more experienced members will
please correct if I'm wrong - that it is the daytime highs more than
nightime lows that cause most of the difficulty? Cool growers don't
like it warmer than 75F during the day and can take down to 45F at
night.
Having said that ... there are probably several hundred species (and
thousands more hybrids) that thrive in Florida. Your best bet is to
visit or contact a local grower, and join a local Orchid Society.
They can easily be found through the internet. There are several
growers who belong to this group. That is how I took a chance on a
Christieara hybrid (Aerides x Vanda x Ascocentrum I think) and it's
doing well up here in the (relatively) cold and dim north. LOL
If I could remember all their websites I would list them, but don't
wish to leave anyone out.
Bob Campoli

Milt and Florida Growing
 

You can go to OrchidMall.com and find links to Orchid Societies and more.

Bob
"bobc" wrote in message
oups.com...
"eddie rukidding" wrote in message

...



Thank you both for your replies -

Sounds like we've made an impulse buy that will have to be kept in the
house if it is to make it at all. Live and learn.

The University of Florida IFAS (http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/EP017)
recommends Cattleya , Phalaenopsis , Dendrobium , Oncidium , Vanda and
Epidendrum for Florida growing.

Are there any other "DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME" types we should avoid
here?

Thanks to all again!

Duane- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

And what they said - plus,

I live in Philadelphia, Pa - it gets warm here ... perhaps not quite
what a Floridian would call warm but ... anyway I also can't get
Miltoniopsis to last more than about 18 months. Wilsonara, a hybrid,
isn't a good choice either. IMHO
Masdevallia, Dracula, and many, but by no means all, Pleurothallis are
cool growing too. I have read - and the more experienced members will
please correct if I'm wrong - that it is the daytime highs more than
nightime lows that cause most of the difficulty? Cool growers don't
like it warmer than 75F during the day and can take down to 45F at
night.
Having said that ... there are probably several hundred species (and
thousands more hybrids) that thrive in Florida. Your best bet is to
visit or contact a local grower, and join a local Orchid Society.
They can easily be found through the internet. There are several
growers who belong to this group. That is how I took a chance on a
Christieara hybrid (Aerides x Vanda x Ascocentrum I think) and it's
doing well up here in the (relatively) cold and dim north. LOL
If I could remember all their websites I would list them, but don't
wish to leave anyone out.
Bob Campoli