They are Here! Arrival pictures

[kid a]

1 Dend. Cathy Beck


I lost most of the roots on this one from the shipping but it does have new root nubs. It's so pretty! And a new growth. I washed soaked and repotted in same pot in the mix I have for most of my plants.

1 Enc. Atronecium 'Mother's Day' x cordigera 'Chocolate Violets'

This was a lot larger than I thought it would be. I think I squealed when I unwrapped the newspaper from it! I did repot this one after washing and soaking because I lost a lot of roots from shipping. But there are several new roots growing, yay! I repotted in same mix as the others (coconut husk, fiber, pearlite, a bit of chior, and a little tiny bit of vermiculite) This also has a new psuedobulb growing in the mix, it's so tiny and cute.

1 Phal {Naples Nights x (Petite Rose x Glad Melinda)}


I only lost one root on this pretty baby. All of the roots other than that one looked great they were bright green and purpleish pink. I thought to myself how pretty! I washed and soaked then repotted in same mix as the others. It has a nice new leaf growing.

1 Blc Haleahi Sunbow x C deckeri

This was almost dry so I soaked in cinn/dishsoap/water and rinsed after soaking in water. I did not repot this one. I had my barky mix all ready and then decided not to repot because it was already midnight. I may repot later.

1 Epi. Mabel Kanda 'Green Leaf'

This little guy had some scale on the leaves some were large but most were tiny. I washed in
cinn/dishsoap/water and removed them all. I also lost most of the roots on this one from shipping. I think the box got wet somewhere along the line with the post offices. It was damp on one end. I also soaked it then repotted in sphag. It has some new root nubs and a new growth.

1 Bc (Llittle Stars x Maikai) 'Hawaii'

I lost some roots on this one too from shipping. One of the laeves had brown mush spot on it and I poked it with a tooth pick and it went right through so I dusted t with cinnamon after washing and soaking. I repotted in the same mix as the others. The leaves were very sturdy. It looked like there was 2 new somethings growing on that little psuedobulb in the front. But they were so tiny I couldn't tell what it was yet. I accidentally rubbed a little bit if the sheath off during washing when I found them.

Do you guys think I potted those ok? I have them in a temporary place until they kind of get used to the environment. In a metal crate thing with a light over it. I will probably move them in with the rest of the plants around this time next week. Sorry to keep everyone waiting. I didn't get home until about 7:30 and spent until 12 working in them.

[articuno75]

They look great! I can't wait for the Cathy Beck to bloom! Mine has done nothing but bask in the sun.

[myorchid]

Kortney

They look great!! I can't wait to see your Cathy Beck in bloom, mine is just staring at me!

[JLu]

Congratulations on your new plants. Hope they do well.

I'm interested in your comments about losing roots due to shipping. It seems unlikely that roots would die so quickly even if the shipping was to cause some lose. I assume they were sourced in the US and shipping was 2-3 days. I've never seen roots lost because of shipping unless there was some unbelievable delay or because the plants were shipped wet and literally boiled the roots. Shipping should always be dry and not enclosed in a plastic bag (orchid vendors seem to love plastic bags for some strange reason). My guess is that the roots were dead before the plants were shipped.

Take good care of them and they will likely be just fine.

[jerrymeola]

Again this gives me a chance to discuss Cattleya roots on young plants.

The Cathy Beck and Encyclia were from plug trays. In another post I mentioned that as new roots grow almost all the old roots will die off. I do not find it necessary to remove the baby roots but removing them certainly will not harm the plant. I find all these roots die in the first 6 months.

All Cattleya develop rotting roots. It is natures way of discarding the old and making room for the new. As long as there is active growth on young plants, the condition of the old roots is not too important. On older plants you need to worry only when the number of bad roots becomes too great. That is why it is always good to remove bad roots on older plants. This type of rot is not the same as that which spreads and causes plants to die. But it is difficult to tell the different. Mostly it is just age and quantity.


The Encyclia had two new growths since they arrived only 2 months ago. I give Worm Tea and Essentials credit for the spurt. I have a couple filling 4 inch pots already. Even the 50 I still have in the one inch plug tray (am I ever behind in work) are over 16 inch leaf spans.

[kid a]

I didn't remove much of the roots on those two just a few on each. When I got them they were moist but I am not at all disappointed. I am so excited about all of them and I'm sure they are all doing great! They all had new root growths. I think between the humidity we have now and the warm temperatures (if they stay) they should thrive. This mix that I use for most of my plants does really good to help and encourage new growths for my environment. It is a very airy mix that drains well and holds moisture. I love it. Ever since I repotted my old plants in it they have taken off! I was going to pot the Cathy Beck in hydroton but decided against it at least for now until after it blooms maybe.

Oh, I do have a few questions though. Can I use the worm tea with super thrive or is it a one or the other thing? Also, I use superthrive with the fertilizer water can the same be done with worm tea? And last question: The directions on the worm tea say 1/3c per gal, does c stand for cup?

[articuno75]

Kortney~ You can use the Superthrive with the wormtea. I don't mix it together. Just use it in intervals. It's 1/3 cup. I actually use 1/4

[patticake]

They're great!!! I can't believe your Cathy Beck! Mine has new growth, but no signs of flower...Thanks for posting all the pics! I love "em!

I got two Phals today from Big Leaf Orchids, but my shipment from Carter & Holmes still hasn't arrived...

Make sure you post pics of Cathy when she pops!

[solay]

Great buys! Looks good too. Can't wait to see thee buds open. Keep us posted.

[kid a]

I can't wait either!!! I did try to squish all of them in with my other plants today but it was difficult then I found a 12 inch light fixture I bought for for the frogs a while back and never used. I mounted it to the wall and moved them on top of the piano by the window under the light. It's not the best light but it'll do for now. It seems much more yellowy than my full spectrums. I did leave the Cathy Beck with the other plants though under the better lights. It was so hot today here. My grandma doesn't want to turn the a/c on if we don't have to so between the humidity and high temps I have a ceiling fan, a mini 4 inch fan, a 7 in clamp on fan, another 7 inch fan, and 10 inch fan in the window running to move the air around. It helps a lot!

[solay]

Sheesh, I tried putting a fan so my chids can get some good air circulation and my husband keeps shutting it off. Said I'm wasting electricity! So it on and off constantly.

[articuno75]

LOL Turn it on and put a piece of tape over the nob.

[sandra]

Originally Posted by kid a

Can I use the worm tea with super thrive or is it a one or the other thing? Also, I use superthrive with the fertilizer water can the same be done with worm tea? And last question: The directions on the worm tea say 1/3c per gal, does c stand for cup?

Kortney, SuperThrive can be used with everything including worm tea. A lot of people use a couple of drops to 1/4 tspn. per gallon, every watering of the ST. I've been using worm tea (1/3 cup per gallon) for over a year and I'm still not sure what the deal is with it except, I keep using it. It's also good for controlling aphids and mites but not entirely. And yes, you can use the worm tea when fertilizing.

You did a really great job with the repots. You must post pics when the Cathy Beck blooms! You must!!!

[kid a]

Originally Posted by sandra

Kortney, SuperThrive can be used with everything including worm tea. A lot of people use a couple of drops to 1/4 tspn. per gallon, every watering of the ST. And yes, you can use the worm tea when fertilizing.

Yay! I usually about 1.8 ml of super thrive per gallon every watering. The superthrive has helped tremendously since I started using it and I am anxious to see how the worm tea helps as well. I did use it for the first time today 1/4 cup to a gal. Thanks Sandra!

I need to go to the Chinese restaurant to get some more chopsticks, I've been using them as skewers! I always grab extra but now all I have are my good ones.

I found the wet and smashed box culprit! It was my grandma! She spilled a a giant cup of iced tea on the box and dropped it. Some of the ink on the box actually came off and was all over her shirt. She forgot about it until tonite! lol

[articuno75]

LoL, that what I use for my skewers and my pokey stick