Indoor Restrepias, Temperature
Hi all,
I'm wondering if anyone would mind sharing their experiences growing Restrepias indoors.
I was recently given two, Restrepia guttulata and Restrepia condorensis (in bloom!), along with a few small Pleurothallis species, and I'm quite intrigued by these little orchids. I'd like to add more to my collection but I want to sort out some cultural problems first before I do. The orchids I received were grown in another part of the country in a cool greenhouse, but I'm forced to grow them indoors.
The problems I'm facing now are mainly temperature - I've got them in a small terrarium, quite humid with good airflow and Phalaenopsis-light levels, but temperature is a problem: with fans and tank placement, I've managed to keep the temperature to about 20C / 68F with the lights on (quite a feat, my terrariums are usually much warmer), and the coolest I can get at night is maybe 17C / 62.5F. I'm quite sure these temps are going to be a problem in the long-run. It is very difficult in my heated northern apartment to maintain low temps AND high humidity, especially in winter - I can manage one or the other, but difficult to get both.
So a few specific questions:
If you grow them indoors, how do you keep the temperatures down, particularly in terrariums?
I could get them much much cooler if I grew them in a window, especially in the winter (-30C here outside during winter), but I'd be sacrificing humidity - what do you think?
How cold do these typically have to get in the winter to induce flowers?
Anyway, thanks!
Markus
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