False Phalaenopsis Accusations

Everyone knows by now that Griffin is a little untrustworthy. Naturally, when I saw the first bloom fall off of this Phal. 'Homedepot' I blamed Griffin.  She was probably looking for goodies, perhaps crying to the Phalaenopsis in her constant quest for treats.  When more blooms fell, we increased our questioning of relevant witness and, while Griffin was still the primary suspect, Trixie and I had no definitive proof Griffin was the culprit. 

I blamed Griffin, in part, because Phals were supposedly one of the easiest orchids to grow.  If my other orchids were thriving, how could this basic orchid, sold to masses, suffer blasted blooms?  It must be Griffin.

Then, I saw signs of crown rot and I discovered that the roots were packed in sphagnum moss.  There was no other growing medium except sad soggy moss that was undoubtedly drowning the plant and cutting its oxygen.  I do not doubt that one can grow phals successfully in sphagnum, but it definitely wasn't working for me or the kitties.  What to do?


I read this helpful entry in allexperts.com from an orchid owner (Vivian) struggling with a similar situation.  The resident expert (Wayne) encouraged Vivian by noting, "You were right to get the plant out of the sphagnum and into a fir-based orchid potting mix."  I wanted to do the right thing, too, so I bought special phal. bark at Sunrise Gardens and repotted it.  A week later, it still looked miserable.  Thinking back to it, I probably didn't let it dry out enough for it to stage a full recovery.

After the final leaf dropped, I cursed the Phalaenopsis genus, threw the plant in the backyard to decompose, and gave Griffin a sincere apology. 

How Cute is Too Cute?

Bumped in the head at four in the morning.  Waking up to Riley licking your ear an hour later.  Unable to type at the computer without him jumping onto your lap.  Following you into the bathroom, into the kitchen, and everywhere else.  Giving pose after adorable pose.  Trying to steal the show at every turn.  These are conditions that lead one to ask "How cute is too cute?"  There are websites devoted to this issue, but Riley forces us to live with it on a daily basis.

Here he is on a late summer day, posing between the blooms of two oncidium hybrids: Colmonara Wildcat 'Green Valley' and C.M. Fitch Izumi.  Too cute?  It's possible.

The Joys of Grocery Shopping

Selena Sabine stands next to a white Dendrobium we purchased from HyVee.   She's impressed with the sparkling shine on the white petals and sepals, the long lasting flowers, and the fact that it was $14.95 from a grocery store.  As Queen of the orchid room, Bean happily posed next to one of her favorites.  Can she get it to rebloom?  Time will tell.


Orchids from grocery stores can be an inexpensive way to expand a collection, and you can also feel good about saving an orchid from a probable death.  The downside is that many of these plants are NOIDs or under-labeled.  So, I was happy to see that Bean's favorite white Dendrobium was labeled as Den. Woo Leng x Den. Burana White.  Woo Leng is a cross between Den. Loan Sudharta x Den. Yong Kok Wah registered in July 1989.  I found only a smattering of information about Burana White.  It doesn't make the flowers look any prettier, but Bean appreciates that this one wasn't labeled "White Dendrobium" as it so easily could have been.

Frog Friday!

Alice crawls past the Certostylis, away from the Onc. velutinum.  This photo was taken during September shortly after my purchase, back when it was looking hale.  Now, the Oncidium is on my RIP list after a tough few months.  It was difficult to figure out what it liked.  It needed consistent watering because it's mounted, but it was in a high humidity environment so maybe it didn't need as much watering as I thought.  Complicating matters, crickets ate chunks from the main leaves, hasting its death.  We experienced a short period where we had too many large crickets in with the frogs and they went after that plant in particular.  

In any case, I certainly couldn't trust Alice to watch over it.  She's only interested in crickets and the scenic view.

The Importance of Labels

I have a few plants in my outdoor garden that I can't completely identify because I lost the garden markers.  Is that peach-colored daylily 'Morning Sunrise?'  'Peach Surprise?' 'Peachy Delight?'


Embarking on the orchid journey, I vowed not to repeat my mistakes.  Frowine's Orchids for Dummies devotes three pages (37-39) to the advantages and disadvantages of various label markers.  I'm following his advice to have a separate list of my collection.  I'm using that document to create typed labels that I'm taping to pots.  A few have smudged with watering, but it's been easy enough to replace the labels.

This got me thinking -- maybe I should I should label the kitties so I don't lose track of them.  Here's what I came up with:

 

 

Who is C.M. Fitch?

The orchid that commands the center spot on the table is my Miltassia C.M. Fitch ‘Izumi’ AM/AOS. It’s a cross between a Miltonia spectabilis and a Brassia verrucosa. The Miltonia gives it the purple and the Brassia gives it the long narrow tepals. I wonder, who is C.M. Fitch? When did he create this hybrid? When did it win an AOS award?  What’s Fitch’s story?


Charles Marden Fitch is the author of several books about plants and orchids. He is a recipient of the Gold Medal of Achievement award from the AOS.  Fitch's CM Fitch 'Izumi' received 80 points at the Annual Hilo Orchid Society Show in July 1997.  He’s been an orchid judge since the 1970’s and he’s renowned for his orchid photography. Fitch has been speaking publically about the joy of orchids since at least the early 1960’s. C.M. Fitch is impressive because his botanical knowledge extends far beyond orchids. He tackled lilies, azaleas, bamboo, and aloe in articles he wrote for Flower Grower, Horticulture, and Flower and Garden during the 60’s and 70’s. In 1977, he published a book about terrariums and, a few years later, a book about miniature roses.


The earliest article I found was a piece on the spider orchid in the January 1961 issue of Flower Grower. The earliest public speaking reference I found was an announcement for a talk titled “Orchid Culture at Talisman Cove” he gave to the Greater New York Orchid Society (NYT, Aug. 19, 1962, pg. 112). (I expected to find a Talisman Cove in New York but, instead, I think it refers to his orchid shop or lab.) In the latter part of the 1960’s, Fitch regularly gave talks and classes about orchid culture. The most recent reference I found took me to Fitch’s report from the 2009 Taiwan International Orchid Show. He’s had a long and productive career, combining a love of photography and plants, and he’s still going strong.


Fitch talked specifically about Cattleyas in an article he wrote for the New York Times in 1984. He said that compact plants in the Cattleya alliance maximize the color a grower can achieve with minimal space. In particular, he recommended Hazel Boyd, Madge Fordyce ‘Red Orb,’ and Jewel Box Sheherazade. (“An Orchid Expert Makes it Sound Easy,” Nov., 25, 1984, H31.)


But I have many more questions, not the least of which is: was Charles M. Fitch a cat person or a dog person?

DC Belle

Samurai Kitty!

Sabine sniffs the air root of a Neofinetia falcata, the “Samurai orchid” or “Japanese wind orchid” from China, Korea, Japan and the Ryukyu Islands. I pronounced Neofinetia in all sorts of interesting ways until I learned its proper pronunciation from Frowine’s Miniature Orchids (Neo-fin-AY-tee-ah). The plant will be much more intriguing in six months, but it’s smart of Bean to check out all of the new ones I bring into the house. The flowers will show off a graceful white spur that curves away from three-lobed lip. This might contribute to the “samurai” name, but Samurai warriors grew the orchid and it stood as a sign of their wealth and respectability. It was difficult to find, so Samurai would demonstrate their bravery and toughness by bringing the plant back to the Japanese royal court.

Linda Fortner (aka “The Orchid Lady”) has a wonderfully informative article about the Neofinetia falcata, including a lot of fascinating material about the naming and classification of the species. This essay also provides a lot of valuable information about its history and care. The plant was first identified in 1728 and first classified into the Western orchid world in 1784. Botanists classified it in a series of different genera over the years, including as an Aerides and an Angracecum, before giving it the generic name Neofinetia (named after 19^th century French botanist Achille Finet). Until 1996, falcata was the lone species attached to the genus. E.A. Christenson successfully lobbied for a second Neofinetia species by naming N. richardsiana. Richardsiana is different from falcate because it has a much shorter spur – more of a Samurai dagger than a sword.

Rebecca Tyson Northern’s book Miniature Orchids notes that it’s “a miniature version of a strap-leaf vanda” that’s “deliciously fragrant in the evening.” She tells me to, “Grow on the cool side of intermediate temperatures (pg. 115).”   Frowine’s Miniature Orchids contradicts this by advising us to treat it to an intermediate-to-warm growing environment with medium light (pgs. 144-145). Like so many other orchid-related quandaries, I’m going to entrust the kitties with giving it the proper care.

Merry Christmas!

The Kitties wish you a Merry Christmas.

Selena Sabine Visits Santa

Sabine paid her yearly visit to Santa and made a litany of requests.  Bean asked for a series of fine orchid specimens (along with the usual list of soft seafood treats).  Compared to the other kitties, Sabine spends the most amount of time in the orchid room, so it's natural that she's the kitty leading the demand for more orchids.

The first one on her list is Paph. delenatii.  Envious that Lan Lan has a slipper orchid, Bean is rallying for a few of her own.  Paph. delenatii is one of the few fragrant Paphiopedilums.  It's compact with a large and mesmerizing pink flower.  She also wants a Paph. malipoense, a dwarf Paph. with a light raspberry scent.

Bean is also craving a green Cattleya hybrid.  Perhaps a Lc. Green Veil 'Dressy' will fit the bill?  A grower writing on the OrchidBoard says that they smell like black pepper.  She's not sure if that's a good thing or not.  Blc. Greenwich 'Elmhurst' AM/AOS stands out as especially attractive this holiday season.  Bean spent a little time on AQ+ slowly scrolling through the ten amazing award-winners from Blc. Greenwich (Lc. Ann Follis x Blc. Lester McDonald).  'Elmurst' boasts of 5-6" apple-green petals, a splash of magenta on the lip, and a strong perfume.  In May 1976, Orchids by Hausermann won 84 points for 'Elmhurst' during the Florida North Central Monthly Judging.  The judges' description noted the "butter yellow" deep in the throat.  Hausermann is selling Blc. Greenwich 'Elmhurst' AM/AOS in three different pot sizes at very reasonable prices.  But Bean cautions me that Santa should probably wait until the March warm-up before acting as a fly-by-night courier for such delicate beauties.  After all, reindeer don't have heat packs.