New Vision Orchids

GROWING COOL LOVING ORCHIDS

 
LYCASTE, ANGULOA, AND IDA

AS GROWN

 AT NEW VISION ORCHIDS

These very showy orchids are all from the new world:

Mexico southward to Colombia, Brazil, Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador.  As a result, the requirements for good growth vary widely.

Temperature, Light, and Water:

Most of the Lycaste species from northern Central America to Mexico require a sharp reduction in the frequency of watering in the winter months until new growth, and often flower buds, appear in the spring.  They can grow well under bright light conditions the same as needed for Cattleya.

Most of the Central American Lycaste species prefer a bit cooler conditions and little to no reduction in the frequency of watering during winter.  Grow at Cattleya light levels.

The Tulip Orchids: Ida and Anguloa  grow moist year ‘round and the Anguloas defoliate in later spring to early summer, about the time of flowering.  Cattleya-level light and cool to cool-intermediate temperatures work well.

Each group does best with drops in night time temperatures, water with low mineral concentration and moderate air movement.  Fine black spotting due to bacteria can occur when night temperatures drop and fine droplets of water condense on the leaves.  Air movement can help prevent this from occurring.

Growing From Flask:

The thin leaves die back easily when moving from the “perfect” conditions of the flask to “the real world”.  Use a fine, good draining, moisture retentive medium and a location with cool air movement, and high humidity.  If the humidity is a problem, plant the seedlings and water them in.  Let the foliage fully dry and then put the pot in a tray with a dome cover, or if growing in a 4” pot put a resealable sandwich bag over the top, which makes a snug fit over the pot.  Water as the surface of the medium shows dryness. Remember to let the foliage dry before putting the cover back on.  After about two months, you should see expanding leaf length, new leaves or growths and possibly roots.  Clear pots aid in this and all sizes of plants seem to favor clear pots.

Repotting Lycaste:

The key to repotting any of these genera is to wait until the new growth is about 2-3” high.  At this time the new roots are starting to grow from the base.  This is the best time because any old roots that are damaged in the repotting are replaced by the new roots.  If you need to delay repotting, always repot when the plant is in active growth and avoid damaging old roots as much as possible.  Position the plant as you would a Cattleya and avoid allowing excessive room for growth as it is easy to over water these orchids.

Lycaste skinneri, alba

Give this beautiful member of the orchid family a try and if you are successful, you will be rewarded with beautiful, long lasting flowers.

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ODONTOGLOSSUM  AND ODONT CULTURE

By Russ Vernon

Odontoglossums and Odontiodas orchids have a much undeserved reputation as being cold growing and difficult to grow.  I find this to be largely untrue.  I want to briefly describe our growing techniques so you can enjoy these colorful orchids, which rival stained glass for colors and multiplicity of patterns.

Temperature: 

Odontoglossums grow in the cloud forests of Colombia and Ecuador.  They do enjoy being cool at night but tolerate much warmer conditions during the day.  Our summertime temperatures run 65 up to 85 during the day and we try to cool them down to below 67 at night if possible.  They tolerate nighttime lows as high as 70 for short periods of time (several days to a week).  In the winter, we heat to 65, warmer with sun, and allow nighttime temperatures to drop to 50.

We hand fog (mist) them sometime in the morning to mimic the cloud forest mornings.

Potting Media:

Even though they have pseudobulbs, Odonts do not like to dry out and prefer a moist but aerated growing mix.  We use coir (ground coconut fiber, it looks like peat moss) at 50%, perlite at 25%, and fine charcoal pieces at 25%.  The coir fibers last for three years and resist breaking down.

Water and Fertilizer:

Under our conditions with good air movement, we water Odonts in 4”+ pots, twice a week, once a week in extended cloudy winter weather.  Smaller pots are watered three times a week, or twice in dark weather.  We use the Michigan State formula fertilizer at about 25% strength on every watering and use no fertilizer one week a month.  Our water is either rain water or RO (reverse osmosis) water.

Light and Summer Cooling: 

Some cooling tricks to try:  Lightly mist the foliage in the evening but not to the point of runoff.  Place the Odont pot in a larger clay pot and stuff sphagnum moss around the Odont pot to fill the gap.  Keep the moss moist.  In both cases, evaporation helps cool the plant.  Grow them in “cool pots” designed with a water reservoir and walls to be highly evaporative.

In the summer, in a greenhouse, place them below the benches where it is cooler, or close to the swamp cooler or wet wall if you have them.  Increase the shade over them although Odonts like Cattleya levels of light.

If you grow orchids outside during the summer, move the Odonts inside when nighttime temperatures will stay above 70 for more than four or five days in a row.

Basement Growing:

Growing them in the basement under lights where it is usually cooler and more humid works well, too. 

Odontioda Bouley Bay

We hope this helps you grow  wonderful and showy odontoglossum and related orchids!