It’s winter time now (weatherwise equivalent to early summer in Los Angeles – where I come from - which means if you feel like it, you can put on an outer shirt over your everyday t-shirt in the evening and won’t sweat too much). I just started my orchid collection before Xmas, feeling it’s the right place (in Thailand) and time (in retirement). Now my pride and joy are several Rhys Giganteas, one white (alba?), two purple-spotted families (clusters having more than one plant), and one “pregnant” one - carrying at the base of its leaves two protruding bumps. This one at the time of purchase, I remember the seller called a “red elephant”. An elephant (orchid) in Thai means a Rhys. So I’m crossing my fingers that it will be a cranberry-red one if and when it finally blooms.
Our daily regimen: Morning bath/feedtime (for them) before breakfast (for me)
Playtime out in the balcony till noon or when the sun gets too harsh.
Afternoon siesta in the greenhouse (aka bathroom)
Evening bath/feedtime (for them) before dinner (for me)
Leave them out in the balcony with the light on till morning.
Little by little I got brave and cut off shriveled parts of their mass of tangled roots and kept only the fat plump ones. I managed to crack a few of them fat roots but they seem unfazed. Latest achievement was repotting the purple-spotted clusters. I bought them both at the same time and when I brought them home, to my horror found out that the potting mix was all mossed-out decade-old Styrofoam. Finally last week I couldn’t take it any more, went to my BigC (Thai version of Ralphs) next door and brought home a bag of coconut husk. Wriggling them Rhys out of their baskets, I could feel we all breathed a sigh of relief when I unclogged them from the nasty Styrofoam bits and trimmed away all the dead roots. Repotted with the husk, cracking a few more roots in the process… but no pain no glory, right?
They seem happy so far… especially the pregnant, supposedly red Rhys. Not only it shows the bumps but also pops out two new baby leaves at the top. When I bought it it already had one bump poking out, but apparently that one has been playing coy (ie sulking.) When I saw the new leaves coming up I started chiding the plant for sprouting leaves instead of spiking. Then I saw the second near pea-size bump and quickly retracted my verbal brandishment.
We have a weekly wholesale flower market in town on Wed-Thu and I wise up going only on Thursday, especially toward the end of the day, when sellers would want to unload at bargain price instead of taking unsold back to the province. I went once Wed morning just when the market opened, thinking that I would find the best selection. True, but then the sellers all had their nose up in the air.
Anyway would appreciate if the gurus on this board could evaluate my green thumb progress - or lack thereof - and dispense further needed advice?
Thank you, with greetings from LOS (Land of Smiles
)
Henry
Ps – will post photos when allowed (after how many posts?)
Sawatdee (Hello) from spanking-new member in sultry Bangkok
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