Catasetum Watering Consensus - Page 3 - Orchid Board

mopwr · #1 07-06-2021, 01:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roberta

You may need to find another place to put it... it still has some growing to do. (Even as the leaves reach their maximum length they continue to spread out) Is there a place where you can put it outside? In summer, it is very likely to be quite warm enough, the extra light is beneficial. Yes, Fdk. After Dark is a big plant. (Fred Clarke of SVO has been working on breeding smaller Catasetinae hybrids, there were some in the last few offerings of young plants, But this one is big)

Thanks for the heads up. It's crazy that it can get so big, as every plant / bulb I've ever found for sale (including the ones I bought) had the largest bulbs being no bigger than 6-8"... I guess they all just ship the smallest back bulbs for sale. I bought a few small mini-type catasetum from Fred Clarke at SVO this year, and I'm glad as I will always make room for Black Pearl as it's a current favorite of mine, but with the size of this guy, it's likely going to be an outdoor grower for at least a good portion of the year. The problem I have is I'll have to build a shade house to grow it, as I have 0 shade from trees in my yard and we often get high winds (no trees = no wind breaks and no shade).

isurus79 · #2 07-06-2021, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mopwr

The problem I have is I'll have to build a shade house to grow it, as I have 0 shade from trees in my yard and we often get high winds (no trees = no wind breaks and no shade).

What part of the country are you in?

mopwr · #3 07-06-2021, 03:22 PM

I'm in Pennsylvania, zone 7b. I'm located at the top of a hill / ridge, so my yard gets full sun from sun up to sundown, no shade, no windbreaks. I grow huge tomato plants, corn, melons, asparagus, all of which I attribute to those things, but I've never figured any orchid could handle it.

isurus79 · #4 07-06-2021, 07:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mopwr

I'm in Pennsylvania, zone 7b. I'm located at the top of a hill / ridge, so my yard gets full sun from sun up to sundown, no shade, no windbreaks. I grow huge tomato plants, corn, melons, asparagus, all of which I attribute to those things, but I've never figured any orchid could handle it.

I suspect your plant would do just fine in full sun at your latitude, with the right acclimation. You could even put it on the east side of the house where it could get some afternoon shade.

Roberta · #5 07-07-2021, 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by isurus79

I suspect your plant would do just fine in full sun at your latitude, with the right acclimation. You could even put it on the east side of the house where it could get some afternoon shade.

In summer, I put my Catasetinae outside on west-facing shelves with 50% shade cloth just to take the "edge" off the blazing afternoon sun. They seem to totally love the high light. (Protected from the toasting noonday direct sun, but still really bright)

isurus79 · #6 07-07-2021, 12:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roberta

In summer, I put my Catasetinae outside on west-facing shelves with 50% shade cloth just to take the "edge" off the blazing afternoon sun. They seem to totally love the high light. (Protected from the toasting noonday direct sun, but still really bright)

I'd probably try almost full sun here if it didn't get so hot in the afternoon, at least during normal summers.

mopwr · #7 07-07-2021, 07:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by isurus79

I'd probably try almost full sun here if it didn't get so hot in the afternoon, at least during normal summers.

Yeah, today even though I'm in the northeast, we hit around 94 - I had a plant in the windowsill in a clear pot that I needed to pull away as I felt like the pot was cooking the roots.

My biggest concern is shielding them from the extremes. When I say we get wind here, we get some serious wind from time to time. I have everything we care about nailed down and bungy corded. I thought about building a small sheltered area for growing plants, and if I can reliably grow these guys outside I may just do that. I'm betting I could acclimate them slowly to the sun, but with how top heavy the plants are now. There's no way I wouldn't be picking them up off the ground twice a week in the summer (thunderstorms are brutal).

SouthPark · #8 07-06-2021, 05:39 PM

If the Fdk orchids are eased into full sun ----- assuming that they weren't growing in full sun to begin with ------- then Fdk orchids (eg. After Dark 'SVO Black Pearl') can handle full sun ...... not just handle it ...... but handle it easily.

WaterWitchin · #9 07-06-2021, 08:42 PM

Mopwr... what a horrible position you're in! A plant that's growing so strong and fast ya don't know what to do! Hope a couple of mine give me that issue...

mopwr · #10 07-07-2021, 08:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WaterWitchin

Mopwr... what a horrible position you're in! A plant that's growing so strong and fast ya don't know what to do! Hope a couple of mine give me that issue...

Ha, I'm both happy it's doing so well, and rapidly running out of space. When I built my DIY "orchidarium", I remember thinking how huge it looked in the room and how empty it was. Now, it seems small and my catasetums are bursting out at the seams.

For reference, the terrarium I used is 36" wide, 18" deep and 36" tall.