I have just checked on my three epidendrum keikis. They are all in the
same pot now, and have been for the last month or so, when I cut them
off the mother.

They have gone from having about 1 in of root each to four times
that. Of course, there is no new growth above ground yet. The root
tips are the same colour as the colour of the flowers on the mother
plant (yellow). The tips of the roots of the mother plant are
green. Weird.

How long do I need to keep them together? I plan on giving them away
as gifts if they pull through, and I don't want the roots too tangled
up for them to be separated easily.

They are in a bark mix right now. Are epidendrums candidates for
semi-hydrophonic culture? How large should they be before I try
replanting?

I have replanted most of my other orchids to SH culture. Is it normal
for SH-bred plants to be wobbly? There is significantly less hold than
I expected in ceramic media the way I use it. I guess I could ram a
couple of wooden bits into the ceramics to stop it flopping about? My
epidendrum especially weighs in at about 500g at a height of 2 feet
right now, and I don't like the idea of that plant becoming unstable.

ObJoy: The mother epidendrum just started flowering. This is the first
orchid I have managed to coax into flowering. Yay!

Geir

Geir,

If the keikies are growing that rapidly with that much root system, I
suspect it's safe to pot them separately now, but don't put them in too big
of a pot size.

As to the wobbly plant in S/H... That's probably a combination of how well
established the plant is (or isn't) and the medium you used. Given time,
the plant will send roots throughout the medium, grabbing more and more of
it, and will also appear to "brace" itself against the pot walls. In the
mean time, stake it or use some wire clips to hold it steady.

If the medium you used is very light or substantially spherical, it may be
tough to get sufficiently stable. Look around for a brand that's more
irregular in shape, and it will lock-in faster.

--

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


"Geir Harris Hedemark" wrote in message
...
I have just checked on my three epidendrum keikis. They are all in the
same pot now, and have been for the last month or so, when I cut them
off the mother.

They have gone from having about 1 in of root each to four times
that. Of course, there is no new growth above ground yet. The root
tips are the same colour as the colour of the flowers on the mother
plant (yellow). The tips of the roots of the mother plant are
green. Weird.

How long do I need to keep them together? I plan on giving them away
as gifts if they pull through, and I don't want the roots too tangled
up for them to be separated easily.

They are in a bark mix right now. Are epidendrums candidates for
semi-hydrophonic culture? How large should they be before I try
replanting?

I have replanted most of my other orchids to SH culture. Is it normal
for SH-bred plants to be wobbly? There is significantly less hold than
I expected in ceramic media the way I use it. I guess I could ram a
couple of wooden bits into the ceramics to stop it flopping about? My
epidendrum especially weighs in at about 500g at a height of 2 feet
right now, and I don't like the idea of that plant becoming unstable.

ObJoy: The mother epidendrum just started flowering. This is the first
orchid I have managed to coax into flowering. Yay!

Geir

On 26 Jan 2003 13:55:34 +0100, Geir Harris Hedemark
(Geir Harris Hedemark) wrote in Message ID
:

I have just checked on my three epidendrum keikis. They are all in the
same pot now, and have been for the last month or so, when I cut them
off the mother.

I usually pot reed-stem Epidendrum keikis in individual 1-1/4" pots in
a medium of peat moss and sponge rock. Reed-steem Epis are
terrestrials after all, so they prefer a more moisture retentive
medium than bark or "brick". That's not to say they won't grow in it.

"Ray @ First Rays Orchids" writes:
If the medium you used is very light or substantially spherical, it may be
tough to get sufficiently stable. Look around for a brand that's more
irregular in shape, and it will lock-in faster.

It is. No other brands are easily available. Do you think mixing with
marble chips would be an option? They don't retain water, but they are
heavy and irregularily shaped.

I guess I could also use a lump hammer to break the spheres up a bit.

Geir

On 26 Jan 2003 19:47:20 +0100, Geir Harris Hedemark
(Geir Harris Hedemark) wrote in Message ID
:

marble chips

Those might unavoidably increase pH.

Larry Dighera writes:
marble chips
Those might unavoidably increase pH.

Right. A wooden rod down the middle it is, then.

Geir

Geir, I don't know if this will help, but there is a product called Blusana
by the Leni company from Germany. It is irregularly shaped and seems to do
better than the really light round stuff. Is there any way you could get
some of that? I haven't been able to find a list of distributors yet.
Maybe you have friends or business connections in Germany? I will write
them and see if they have a distributor in Norway.
--
Reka
http://www.rolbox.it/hukari/index.html
"A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject."
--Winston Churchill
"Geir Harris Hedemark" schrieb im Newsbeitrag
...
"Ray @ First Rays Orchids" writes:
If the medium you used is very light or substantially spherical, it may
be
tough to get sufficiently stable. Look around for a brand that's more
irregular in shape, and it will lock-in faster.

It is. No other brands are easily available. Do you think mixing with
marble chips would be an option? They don't retain water, but they are
heavy and irregularily shaped.

I guess I could also use a lump hammer to break the spheres up a bit.

Geir

Washed river gravel or pebbles is what a friend uses. He even mixes those
with spaghnum moss to grow his phals. No pH problems there.
Gary
"Geir Harris Hedemark" wrote in message
...
"Ray @ First Rays Orchids" writes:
If the medium you used is very light or substantially spherical, it may
be
tough to get sufficiently stable. Look around for a brand that's more
irregular in shape, and it will lock-in faster.

It is. No other brands are easily available. Do you think mixing with
marble chips would be an option? They don't retain water, but they are
heavy and irregularily shaped.

I guess I could also use a lump hammer to break the spheres up a bit.

Geir