Hello all
Ive heard that in the US you can buy your orchids and board them at a
nursery.Does anyone know any details and costs of this.
Thanks
Stuart

Stuart,

I can't be specific as to cost, since nurseries that do this kind of thing
vary. But I know that in the grand scheme of things it's a pricey
proposition. One fellow grower said she'd checked with a local in her area
and was quoted $1 per day per plant. She has around 50 plants and was going
to be gone for two weeks. You do the math. Plus, no guarantees on the
health of the plants other than that the grower would treat them well, and
remedy any problems as best as possible. Others may know of less costly
services.

Diana
"stuie stuie" wrote in message
...
Hello all
Ive heard that in the US you can buy your orchids and board them at
a
nursery.Does anyone know any details and costs of this.
Thanks
Stuart

Stuart,

There used to be a nursury in the Richmond area that would take out of bloom
plants from people and board them until they bloomed again. The idea was
that it was cheaper to board that plant than buy new plants in bloom. Each
year you got a bigger plant and even better if it was a gift from family
member you got the memories.

I think they charged by the month and by the size of the plant but I don't
recall the cost.

For some well to do folks who always want a blooming plant they would drop
the plant off and pick up another one in bloom. Sounds like a great
business in a wealthy area.

I don't believe they offer this service any longer.

Good growing,
Gene

On Sun, 11 May 2003 23:19:18 GMT, "Gene Schurg"
wrote:


Stuart,

There used to be a nursury in the Richmond area that would take out of bloom
plants from people and board them until they bloomed again. The idea was
that it was cheaper to board that plant than buy new plants in bloom. Each
year you got a bigger plant and even better if it was a gift from family
member you got the memories.

I think they charged by the month and by the size of the plant but I don't
recall the cost.

For some well to do folks who always want a blooming plant they would drop
the plant off and pick up another one in bloom. Sounds like a great
business in a wealthy area.

I don't believe they offer this service any longer.

Good growing,
Gene

I Colorado Springs there is a florist that does hotel flowers and
others. She sells the plant, will take it back for 1/2 credit on
the next bloom you buy. Sounds like a used book store I know. But
the book store sells the used books at 1/2 the cover. The plant
store sells the out of bloom at $5 to 10. But of course they
generally no longer have the name tags.

Some growers that board do it by the square feet of bench space,
others do it by the # of pots and size of pots. Either way it is
very expensive. I have known some AOS judges that kept specimen
size plants with favorite growers. But the pollen was the
growers to use. Most boarded plants I have seen have had a
problem due to lack of personal care.

SuE
http://orchids.legolas.org/gallery/albums.php

Although I haven't looked into this yet, it has been a thought that
has plagued me for several years now. My in-home collection has grown
to over 60 orchid plants, a major responsibility requiring almost as
much attention as 3 kids, two dogs, 4 cats,a hampster and 2 horses. I
used to travel quite a bit before my orchid addiction got started.
Now, all I do is care for, inspect for disease and water plants and
smell & look at the blossoms. Everytime I start to think about a two
week to a month trip all I envision is a pile of dead orchids when I
get back. It's too much to ask of someone to come in twice a week for
2 to 3 hrs let alone trust someone to do it right.

Many of the local greenhouses store fuscias and other potted plants
for people through the winter around here. The costs are supposedly
quite reasonable although I've never checked into it. I have several
friends that use this service.
I see the problem as being that buisness slows down in the winter so
they have the room for them then. They'll fillup almost half of the
g.h. with them. In the summer they're full up with all the plants
they're trying to sell. It'll probably be more expensive to get them
to do it during that season. I'm a slave to my orchids. If I ever
really want to spend a lot of time traveling again, I'm afraid I'll
have to get rid of my orchids. Not yet though.


Susan Erickson wrote in message . ..
On Sun, 11 May 2003 23:19:18 GMT, "Gene Schurg"
wrote:


Stuart,

There used to be a nursury in the Richmond area that would take out of bloom
plants from people and board them until they bloomed again. The idea was
that it was cheaper to board that plant than buy new plants in bloom. Each
year you got a bigger plant and even better if it was a gift from family
member you got the memories.

I think they charged by the month and by the size of the plant but I don't
recall the cost.

For some well to do folks who always want a blooming plant they would drop
the plant off and pick up another one in bloom. Sounds like a great
business in a wealthy area.

I don't believe they offer this service any longer.

Good growing,
Gene

I Colorado Springs there is a florist that does hotel flowers and
others. She sells the plant, will take it back for 1/2 credit on
the next bloom you buy. Sounds like a used book store I know. But
the book store sells the used books at 1/2 the cover. The plant
store sells the out of bloom at $5 to 10. But of course they
generally no longer have the name tags.

Some growers that board do it by the square feet of bench space,
others do it by the # of pots and size of pots. Either way it is
very expensive. I have known some AOS judges that kept specimen
size plants with favorite growers. But the pollen was the
growers to use. Most boarded plants I have seen have had a
problem due to lack of personal care.

SuE
http://orchids.legolas.org/gallery/albums.php

If grown in the right conditions, most healthy plants are going to take a
two week drought totally in stride.

Watering thoroughly - almost overwatering - for a couple of days prior to
leaving helps a lot. The plants won't get root rot from one episode of
overwatering. If you can provide a high-humidity environment, that'll help
as well.

If you have mounted plants that require daily watering, put them outside and
set your garden sprinkler on a timer.

Or..... grow 'em semi-hydroponically and two weeks is a walk in the park!

--

Ray Barkalow First Rays Orchids
http://www.firstrays.com
Secure Online Ordering & Lots of Free Info!


"solo_voyager" wrote in message
om...
Although I haven't looked into this yet, it has been a thought that
has plagued me for several years now. My in-home collection has grown
to over 60 orchid plants, a major responsibility requiring almost as
much attention as 3 kids, two dogs, 4 cats,a hampster and 2 horses. I
used to travel quite a bit before my orchid addiction got started.
Now, all I do is care for, inspect for disease and water plants and
smell & look at the blossoms. Everytime I start to think about a two
week to a month trip all I envision is a pile of dead orchids when I
get back. It's too much to ask of someone to come in twice a week for
2 to 3 hrs let alone trust someone to do it right.

Many of the local greenhouses store fuscias and other potted plants
for people through the winter around here. The costs are supposedly
quite reasonable although I've never checked into it. I have several
friends that use this service.
I see the problem as being that buisness slows down in the winter so
they have the room for them then. They'll fillup almost half of the
g.h. with them. In the summer they're full up with all the plants
they're trying to sell. It'll probably be more expensive to get them
to do it during that season. I'm a slave to my orchids. If I ever
really want to spend a lot of time traveling again, I'm afraid I'll
have to get rid of my orchids. Not yet though.


Susan Erickson wrote in message
. ..
On Sun, 11 May 2003 23:19:18 GMT, "Gene Schurg"
wrote:


Stuart,

There used to be a nursury in the Richmond area that would take out of
bloom
plants from people and board them until they bloomed again. The idea
was
that it was cheaper to board that plant than buy new plants in bloom.
Each
year you got a bigger plant and even better if it was a gift from
family
member you got the memories.

I think they charged by the month and by the size of the plant but I
don't
recall the cost.

For some well to do folks who always want a blooming plant they would
drop
the plant off and pick up another one in bloom. Sounds like a great
business in a wealthy area.

I don't believe they offer this service any longer.

Good growing,
Gene

I Colorado Springs there is a florist that does hotel flowers and
others. She sells the plant, will take it back for 1/2 credit on
the next bloom you buy. Sounds like a used book store I know. But
the book store sells the used books at 1/2 the cover. The plant
store sells the out of bloom at $5 to 10. But of course they
generally no longer have the name tags.

Some growers that board do it by the square feet of bench space,
others do it by the # of pots and size of pots. Either way it is
very expensive. I have known some AOS judges that kept specimen
size plants with favorite growers. But the pollen was the
growers to use. Most boarded plants I have seen have had a
problem due to lack of personal care.

SuE
http://orchids.legolas.org/gallery/albums.php

I don't know how you'd do it inside but my wife and I found that if we
wanted to travel, we simply had to automate. We spent a year's (+) travel
money to add automated louvers, fans (large and small exhaust and HAF),
pumps for evaporative cooling and mist for watering. Sensors and thermostats
helped instead of just timers (although timers would probably work just fine
for a few weeks). I had an extra computer left over from upgrading my wife's
which I could then program to control most of the sensors. We still hire a
local teen to check out the greenhouse every other day for things that look
too dry (she's a very responsible 14 yr old and learns quickly). This is
just extra insurance that doesn't cost much. Now, for a weekend trip, a week
at the beach or mountains, or a major 2-4 week vacation to visit the folks
or grandkids (and probably collect more orchids along the way) our only loss
is missing a plant in bloom. Now I just need to get that teen to take
pictures of the missed blooms and set up the computer so that I can control
it with my laptop from across the country if necessary.
Besides allowing travel, the automation allows you to enjoy the orchids more
and when you want to, not when you have to.
"Susan Erickson" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 11 May 2003 23:19:18 GMT, "Gene Schurg"
wrote:


Stuart,

There used to be a nursury in the Richmond area that would take out of
bloom
plants from people and board them until they bloomed again. The idea was
that it was cheaper to board that plant than buy new plants in bloom.
Each
year you got a bigger plant and even better if it was a gift from family
member you got the memories.

I think they charged by the month and by the size of the plant but I
don't
recall the cost.

For some well to do folks who always want a blooming plant they would
drop
the plant off and pick up another one in bloom. Sounds like a great
business in a wealthy area.

I don't believe they offer this service any longer.

Good growing,
Gene

I Colorado Springs there is a florist that does hotel flowers and
others. She sells the plant, will take it back for 1/2 credit on
the next bloom you buy. Sounds like a used book store I know. But
the book store sells the used books at 1/2 the cover. The plant
store sells the out of bloom at $5 to 10. But of course they
generally no longer have the name tags.

Some growers that board do it by the square feet of bench space,
others do it by the # of pots and size of pots. Either way it is
very expensive. I have known some AOS judges that kept specimen
size plants with favorite growers. But the pollen was the
growers to use. Most boarded plants I have seen have had a
problem due to lack of personal care.

SuE
http://orchids.legolas.org/gallery/albums.php

On 11 May 2003 22:50:53 -0700, (solo_voyager)
wrote:

My in-home collection has grown to over 60 orchid plants, a major
responsibility requiring almost as much attention as 3 kids, two dogs, 4 cats,
a hampster and 2 horses. I used to travel quite a bit before my orchid
addiction got started. Now, all I do is care for, inspect for disease and water
plants and smell & look at the blossoms. Everytime I start to think about a
two week to a month trip all I envision is a pile of dead orchids when I
get back. It's too much to ask of someone to come in twice a week for
2 to 3 hrs let alone trust someone to do it right.

That pretty well sums up the plight of us orchidphiles.

In 2000 , I could transport the plants in a single carload, so a
plantsitter was still a reasonable option. Even if a few plants
suffered at the reduction in obsessive attention, it was still
possible to tour foreign lands for a few weeks, and return to find
minimal loss.

With several times that many now, I'm only able to slip out of town
for a few days at a time, and then the anxiety at the thought of my
mounted plants drying and shriveling provokes a premature return home.

What is it about these slow growing plants that we find fascinating to
the extent of changing our behavior and reducing our autonomy? Is it
their epiphytic independence from soil and the necessity of being
rooted in the garden that provides them with an air of mobility and
independence that robs us of ours? Or is it their marvelous flowers
and exotic scents that gradually seduce us into surrendering our
mobility? They are so beguiling, that we joyfully provide them with
their own house as we might a mate!

If I ever really want to spend a lot of time traveling again, I'm afraid I'll
have to get rid of my orchids. Not yet though.

Right. Not yet. :-)

But we shouldn't be forced to choose between orchids and travel.
Automated horticulture is the solution.

I can envision a future in which each plant is tended by a solar
powered computerized system capable of sensing environmental
conditions and adjusting them to remain within preset bounds.
Irrigation, temperature, illumination, humidity, air movement,
nutrition, all independently manipulated optimally for each plant by
simple off-the-shelf technology available today.

Then we will again be free to indulge a voyage to distant lands in
search of more orchids, of course.

What is it about these slow growing plants that we find fascinating to
the extent of changing our behavior and reducing our autonomy? Is it their
epiphytic independence from soil and the necessity of being rooted in the
garden that provides them with an air of mobility and independence that
robs us of ours? Or is it their marvelous flowers and exotic scents that
gradually seduce us into surrendering our mobility

Let's put it this way. At our society's show in March, as I watched people
leave with arms full of as many orchids they could carry, I remarked to a
friend that I'd never seen anyone go so quite so soft-headed over rose
bushes!

The orchid vendor in the Richmond, VA area that boards orchids is Chadwick and
Son Orchids in Powhatan, Virginia. Boarding orchids is still a large part of
their business. You can find their website at the Orchid Mall.

Automated horticulture is the solution.

Quite right.

I can envision a future in which each plant is tended by a solar
powered computerized system capable of sensing environmental
conditions and adjusting them to remain within preset bounds.
Irrigation, temperature, illumination, humidity, air movement,
nutrition, all independently manipulated optimally for each plant by
simple off-the-shelf technology available today.


Where can you find this kind of hardware off the shelf. When I ask at
various vendors around here, they give me a blank stare as if I was using
some strange, alien language. Controllers are easy enough to find, but
sensors for temperature, humidity, soil moisture and nutrients, that will
pass data to the computer are a different story. Occassionally, I find a
vendor far far away that might have a suitable sensor for temperature, but
no such luck for the rest. This is the final hurdle in the construction of
my growth chambers or wardian cases.

The programming side is easy. And I can see the technology being modular,
and therefore quite scalable from something small enough for a single
african violet to something large enough to handle the largest orchid
collection imaginable. I can even see a future in which such hardware is
connected to a relational database containing data documenting optimal
growing environments for each species/variety/grex/&c., at least given
common experience with the plants, so that all one need do is enter the
names of the plants being maintained and the computer will either tell you
that it isn't possible to keep the named species together because the best
environment for one will kill the other, or compute the best environment to
keep all identified plants happy

The real question is, "Who is going to finance the development and
marketting of such products?"

Cheers,

Ted

Sensors and thermostats
helped instead of just timers (although timers would probably work just
fine
for a few weeks). I had an extra computer left over from upgrading my
wife's
which I could then program to control most of the sensors.

Where did you find these sensors, and exactly what were you measuring?
Finding suitable sensors has been, and continues to be, the most problematic
part of my efforts to make a growth chamber.

I can not take a vacation since the only person who could conveniently take
care of my plants is my sister, and she has such a black thumb she can even
kill plastic plants. ;-) I DID manage to teach her daughter how to keep
an african violet happy (though I help her out a bit when she's at school or
in bed), but she is still too young to take on such a responsibility for
plants that cost just a wee bit more than her C$2 violet.

Cheers,

Ted

Here in Atlanta This place offers boarding but I don't know prices. I
have a guy that comes and stays with my plants, and the kitty, but
more for the plants. I raise mostly from flask so it takes a lot of
attention. I pay him very well for his time. I also have write ups for
each and every plant, basket, cork, seedling, and tray, as well as the
full grown stuff. All my rooms are automated, but it still requires
attention a couple of hours twice a day. So far he has not lost any of
my tender vegitation. He is not even a plant person, has none of his
own!

Find someone you trust and pay them well!!


On Tue, 13 May 2003 02:14:22 GMT, Larry Dighera
wrote:

On 11 May 2003 22:50:53 -0700, (solo_voyager)
wrote:

My in-home collection has grown to over 60 orchid plants, a major
responsibility requiring almost as much attention as 3 kids, two dogs, 4 cats,
a hampster and 2 horses. I used to travel quite a bit before my orchid
addiction got started. Now, all I do is care for, inspect for disease and water
plants and smell & look at the blossoms. Everytime I start to think about a
two week to a month trip all I envision is a pile of dead orchids when I
get back. It's too much to ask of someone to come in twice a week for
2 to 3 hrs let alone trust someone to do it right.

That pretty well sums up the plight of us orchidphiles.

In 2000 , I could transport the plants in a single carload, so a
plantsitter was still a reasonable option. Even if a few plants
suffered at the reduction in obsessive attention, it was still
possible to tour foreign lands for a few weeks, and return to find
minimal loss.

With several times that many now, I'm only able to slip out of town
for a few days at a time, and then the anxiety at the thought of my
mounted plants drying and shriveling provokes a premature return home.

What is it about these slow growing plants that we find fascinating to
the extent of changing our behavior and reducing our autonomy? Is it
their epiphytic independence from soil and the necessity of being
rooted in the garden that provides them with an air of mobility and
independence that robs us of ours? Or is it their marvelous flowers
and exotic scents that gradually seduce us into surrendering our
mobility? They are so beguiling, that we joyfully provide them with
their own house as we might a mate!

If I ever really want to spend a lot of time traveling again, I'm afraid I'll
have to get rid of my orchids. Not yet though.

Right. Not yet. :-)

But we shouldn't be forced to choose between orchids and travel.
Automated horticulture is the solution.

I can envision a future in which each plant is tended by a solar
powered computerized system capable of sensing environmental
conditions and adjusting them to remain within preset bounds.
Irrigation, temperature, illumination, humidity, air movement,
nutrition, all independently manipulated optimally for each plant by
simple off-the-shelf technology available today.

Then we will again be free to indulge a voyage to distant lands in
search of more orchids, of course.

On Tue, 13 May 2003 23:19:11 -0400, "Ted Byers"
wrote:

Automated horticulture is the solution.

Quite right.

I can envision a future in which each plant is tended by a solar
powered computerized system capable of sensing environmental
conditions and adjusting them to remain within preset bounds.
Irrigation, temperature, illumination, humidity, air movement,
nutrition, all independently manipulated optimally for each plant by
simple off-the-shelf technology available today.


Where can you find this kind of hardware off the shelf.

Thermostats and thermistors are readily available, as are photocells,
humidistats, fans. Anyone with a rudimentary knowledge of electronics
can cobble together a circuit that will sense the resistance between
two electrodes imbedded in the potting medium to sense moisture.
Nutritional control is best done 'open loop' at present through timed
release.

When I ask at
various vendors around here, they give me a blank stare as if I was using
some strange, alien language. Controllers are easy enough to find, but
sensors for temperature, humidity, soil moisture and nutrients, that will
pass data to the computer are a different story. Occassionally, I find a
vendor far far away that might have a suitable sensor for temperature, but
no such luck for the rest. This is the final hurdle in the construction of
my growth chambers or wardian cases.

If you can't find sensors available that are dedicated to the purpose
you need, construct your own from discrete parts.

The programming side is easy. And I can see the technology being modular,
and therefore quite scalable from something small enough for a single
african violet to something large enough to handle the largest orchid
collection imaginable. I can even see a future in which such hardware is
connected to a relational database containing data documenting optimal
growing environments for each species/variety/grex/&c., at least given
common experience with the plants, so that all one need do is enter the
names of the plants being maintained and the computer will either tell you
that it isn't possible to keep the named species together because the best
environment for one will kill the other, or compute the best environment to
keep all identified plants happy

What you describe is doable today.

The real question is, "Who is going to finance the development and
marketting of such products?"

Cheers,

Ted

When the marketplace is willing to pay for such technology, the
products will appear. Until then, we'll have to develop our own
automated systems.

Perhaps you'll find some useful information he
http://www.maxim-ic.com/appnotes10.c...category/ln/en

Use a search engine google, or my favorite, Copernic.
Look at the grow sites for hydroponics. (loads of info and parts in
the pot growers sites as well). I have been in the microfilm, camera,
processing and printing industry most of my life, so I have tested
many parts and sensors for reliability. I also am an electronic
hobbyist, so I build a lot of my own circuit boards for certain
applications. You can cannibalize cheap thermostats from home depot
for sensors. Try a couple of these places as well.

http://www.controlsupply.com/humidity.htm
http://www.greenair.com/product.htm
http://www.atlantishydroponics.com/index.html
http://www.fullbloomhydroponics.com/
http://www.greenbeam.com/home.stm
http://www.graybar.com
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg/start.shtml


Grow On
NANOOK














On Tue, 13 May 2003 23:25:55 -0400, "Ted Byers"
wrote:

Sensors and thermostats
helped instead of just timers (although timers would probably work just
fine
for a few weeks). I had an extra computer left over from upgrading my
wife's
which I could then program to control most of the sensors.

Where did you find these sensors, and exactly what were you measuring?
Finding suitable sensors has been, and continues to be, the most problematic
part of my efforts to make a growth chamber.

I can not take a vacation since the only person who could conveniently take
care of my plants is my sister, and she has such a black thumb she can even
kill plastic plants. ;-) I DID manage to teach her daughter how to keep
an african violet happy (though I help her out a bit when she's at school or
in bed), but she is still too young to take on such a responsibility for
plants that cost just a wee bit more than her C$2 violet.

Cheers,

Ted