Quote:
Originally Posted by Tobi  Kevin,
Very nice flower. I've been doing a little research on this genus. Is this
particular guy a Himalaya type or a Malaysia type? I know that the Himalaya
type needs cooler growing conditions. At what temps are you growing yours
at? What care do you provide for them and what type of media do use?
Some are scented, is this one? |
Hi Tobi,
The Coelogyne picture I just posted is Coel speciosa subsp. incarnata (Clayton, p78). All of the types of speciosa come from the areas of Java, Sumatra, they are among the intermediate growing Coelogynes. In my care it gets winter nights as low as 10-12C (50-55F), winter days 18-20C (65-70F), summer nights about 15-20C (60-68F), and summer days as high as 35C (95F).
They seem to benefit from a bit of moisture, although they can tolerate drying out a bit in winter when it is cooler (keep in mind it is mid-winter right now where I live in Australia); you don't want them wet and soggy in winter.
I only repot my Coel. when they are overflowing the pot and even then, I only pot them up. They unanimously (except for fimbriata) seem to resent being disturbed and will sulk for a year or 2 before settling back in to grow. I am trying different mixes on them. Some folks here use a dry open mix (medium bark and medium stones) and water a lot, some use shredded coir, I have the one pictured in my moisture retentive Paph mix and it seems to be doing well. This plant in this mix gets watered about every 5-7 days in summer and about every 7-14 days in winter. Some of my other Coelogynes in drier mix have slightly shriveled bulbs.
Which brings me to light: I actually grow my speciosas in fairly low light, in a south facing window in my flat (roughly the equivalent of a north facing window in Cleveland, OH), same light as my mottle-leaf Paphs.
My speciosas, and speciosa-types (like xyrekes) usually bloom twice a year. Simply put...they're super easy, easily one of the 5 or so easiest orchids i've ever grown (both in the US and in Australia). The conditions they like are pretty much what most folks have in their home.
Cheers