New guy here!
 

Hey Peeps, My name is Mark and I live in Albion, New york. I'm a long time carnivorous plant grower, mostly plants of the genus Nepenthes, but I've started to dabble in orchids the last few years. Some..I've had fantastic success with, such as Cattleya percivilliana and several Phalenopsis species and hybrids...others....not so much. (Glares at his maxillaria tenuifolia)

Anyway...after pollinating some cattleya flowers and reading some orchid books..I've decided to dive head first into the hobby...and try to learn more. I look forward to learning from you all!

Welcome!!! It is great to see a new member diving headfirst into orchids! But be cautious of your into Phals, as you might catch Phal fever, and you aren't going to find any help from us other than more enablement! :D

Welcome! Maybe you can pass me some tips on catts...I just can't figure them out. I can get new growth and sheaths, but as soon as I get my hopes up on blooms the sheaths dry up and I'm sad/mad all over again.

And pay no mind to August...no one here has ever "enabled" a day in their life. :liar:

:welcomeflowers: Maxillaria likes LOTS of water !!! I keep mine in a catch tray and leave it full every time I water ! I also use the kitchen sink sprayer to soak all the pseudobulbs that are growing way above the media. I'll put it outside as soon as possible in filtered sunlight but until then it's under my bank of 6 T8 lights. Check out my thread on Max. t !!!

Grasshopper,
Don't get too upset over brown sheaths in Cattleyas, there are a lot of them that bloom a long time after the sheath turns brown !!! DON'T pull it or cut it off and you just might be surprised later !! I DO agree that they are temperamental types though !! I don't grow any big ones but I work frequently with my mentor who has approx 1000 of them !!!

Welcome Exo! :)

well...my experience is has mostly with monofoliate cattleya species...but it seems that cooler temps when the sheaths are ready to make blooms helps alot, at least with the fall/winter blooming ones.

---------- Post added at 06:15 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:12 PM ----------

And it blooms, eh?.....hmm..mine might be getting a bit too dry in the winter...perhaps I'll step up the watering. Thanks.

I was told by an AOS judge/vendor/breeder, if that makes a difference, that "you CAN'T over water the tenuifolia" !!! I'm believing him now as I've stepped up my watering to leaving the tray FULL of water and it's gone in a few days at my home !!! Here's the link to my thread.

http://www.orchidboard.com/community...enuifolia.html

Welcome to Orchid Board! I share your enthusiasm for Cattleya percivilliana. Good luck with all your orchids.

Facinating....well...the blooming season is approaching, so I shall water the heck out of it! :lol:

I totally agree with this statement. I'm new when it comes to caring for orchids and I've caught the Phal fever really bad (or YAP as it has been termed by an ingenious member).

From one newbie to another: Welcome! :waving