Orchids growing in Gel

[Leafmite]

Has anyone else been tempted to try these? I am always curious and so I bought them to see how they would actually do. Haraella rectrocalla is one of my favorite orchids and the Psygmorchis Pusilla is one I have had trouble growing long-term in the past. The claim is that they will be fine for a year in the jar but I plan to mount them both in January/February and then return them to the jars.

[Mr.Fakename]

I assume this is nutritive jelly for in vitro culture?

As soon as you'll open the jar, the gel will be contaminated and will be unusable.

[hypostatic]

as long as everything is sterilized, should be just like growing in a flask

[Leafmite]

Exactly, it is just like a flask of seedlings where one cannot open it until one is ready to grow it in a different manner. What is nice is that it doesn't need any care until then so I can just enjoy it as it is. One of these might make a nice gift for some of my friends and family that love plants but do not have a green thumb.

[MJG]

Cool and pretty! Did you by any chance order these from Bloomify aka Orchid Gene? They have a similar product that seems to be their niche.

I had been looking for a Gastrochilus Japonicus a couple of months ago. I couldn't find it anywhere, and then I found it on Amazon. I was aghast at ordering an orchid from a gift shop on Amazon, but I got a really beautiful healthy plant. Mine is mounted, not in gel, but the health of the plant and good experience may take me back there for more.

I hadn't thought about getting one of the gel orchids, but you're revving me up! Something new and different and beautiful...always a good thing.

[Leafmite]

It did come from Bloomify/Orchid Gene. The orchids look really good so I just ordered a Sundew, something I have been wanting to try.

Ordering living things through Amazon is a bit scary, I think. I have ordered other plants and even cherry shrimp through Amazon. I always try to find the vendor's website outside of Amazon to learn about the vendor and then read through the Amazon reviews very carefully. So far, I have not been disappointed.

[Mr.Fakename]

That's a neat concept, they seem to have lots of interesting things and it's not even that expensive.

How do you intend to mount them? Do they stay this big? I'm really curious to see how it's going to look like!

I've had mixed experiences with deflasking and seedlings, but if your idea is to put them back in their containers they'll already be acclimated to lighting and temperatures, that's great for survival rates. Maybe the infamous Quantum Total will help as well?

[Leafmite]

These will stay both stay small...should clump a bit as time goes on if all goes well but they will fit in a jar for a very long time.

I have some very large pieces of lava rock and will probably begin growing moss on them in September so that the moss should be well established by the time I add the mini orchid. The rock will wick up the water and keep the roots moist while allowing maximum air exposure. This will work well for both of these orchids.

I do not buy flasks as I just do not have the space to raise so many orchids. If I had a greenhouse, I would definitely do it as I really find it fascinating to see the genetic variation between siblings. Some of our members buy flasks or have seeds flasked and bring in the siblings when they bloom and I really enjoy that. I also really like raising orchids from a very young stage (have raised newly community potted orchids in the past) to maturity. Most of my current orchids are a few years from blooming.

[Leafmite]

One of the nice benefits of the clear gel is watching the Psygmorchis Pusilla grow roots. I wish the gel for the Haraella was clear as well.

[Leafmite]

This one just bloomed. I really like the light yellow of the flower. The roots are growing very well, too. I am really enjoying this one.