I just counted my orchids...

[slippery_biscuit]

I knew the number had been increasing. At the end of last year, maybe 2 orchids on hand. I thought I was around 50right now, but yesterday I counted 82 and maybe missed a couple!!!

Jeff

[Ellen]

Orchids do have a way of multiplying while you're not paying attention. I gave up counting a long time ago. Now I measure in terms of the area they occupy.

[janet_a]

tsk tsk gotta watch those little suckers...

[pikevi]

slippery_biscuit : I can totally relate to your experience!

I hope the number will grow exponentionally

good luck

[flowerchild]

I am at about 20, and everywhere I go I see an orchid and I just have to look, but must resist temptation until I convince my husband to buy a bigger house with better light and a great big sunroom with good light of course!!!!

[prisana]

Have any of you guys realize that since you've been into orchids, you start seeing them everywhere.. movies , talk shows, commercials..and what not. You're like, oh yeah, that's a Phal, thats' a Den , that's a Catt..and so on and then you wonder if they will take care of those babies the way they deserve to be treated

[mayres]

Prisana - funny you should say that - whenever I see an orchid on a set on TV I have to make certain I point that out to my wife! One of our favorite old series is Northern Exposure, and the glass bubble house that was on for a season was filled with them. I was impressed - even if my wife was not.
I've read how some people like to keep a log of their plants and have yet to decide if that is crazy or not? Of course those with greenhouses filled with hundreds or even thousands could not do this?
Just for the fun of it I logged all my plants of the last three years yesterday - believe it or not I can still remember the source and near time for every single one! I came up with 85 plus I have 4-5 over at my mom's blooming their hearts out and another 5 that are duplicates from divisions (those don'd count do they?). Which brings up an interesting point - one of the problems with continuing this hobby is that they multiply! I need to find more friends who enjoy orchids so I have someone to give them too. Many of my plants are NOIDs (30 - I still like em) so they are not particularly valuable for sale or trade. mike

[prisana]

Mike, Hey..you can send them to me ??? I'm your long lost friend you forgot about I was watching Smallville one time ( #1 super hero movies fan )and it's was this episode where they were showing Lex's green house "filled" with orchids..I was like .. NOOO.. he's too wicked to be liking orchids, this is all wrong!! I do keep a log on my orchid's growth ( and death ) I haven't had them for too long but I remember where and when I got each one without even looking (so far ) at the log book. I just keep the log just in case one of them is missing from my yard, I'd know which one.

[Maddy]

Just doing a quickie mental count I came up with 34, but that seems low. I think I'm forgetting somebody - maybe several somebodys.

The A&P (grocery) closest to my house had the most gorgeous cymbidiums for Easter. *Sigh* if only I had the room. Of course, the $60 price tag was pretty gorgeous, too.. I did get two more phals, though - "Sunny Beach Day" (it's coral and yellow) and a yellow and pink NOID that I think may have a keiki starting. I've never seen a leaf on a flower spike before.

[butt0n]

I caved and bought a Phal. Taisuco Peace x Phal amabilis. So that makes 11 total for me. I try to only get ones I really really want and since I was looking for a blush toned phal, I got it!

[kmarch]

Dear Mayres,

When I started out, i kept a detailed record of every plant I had. I recorded when it started a new growth, when it bloomed, when i repotted. i had a sheet for each plant. I learned a great deal about the growing and blooming cycles of my plants from doing this, what to expect when and what to look for. It was extreemely helpful. Eventually though, the collection got too big and having a speerate piece of paper for each plant became overwhelming. Now I do things like write the date of repotting on the name tag, and that's about it. I also take pictures of my plants in bloom for posterity's sake and to use them for things like this forum. I also do record my plants on a list that also contains where I purchased each plant and how much i paid for it, sounds limilar to what you're doing. I also include any ribbons or awards it wins.

So the short answer to your question is i don't think it's crazy, but if you're going to put in the time and effort, make sure you get somethign out of it, like a better understanding of your plants instead of a big pile of papers.

-K

[flowerchild]

If your stuck on people to give them too, you can send me some!!!!!

[mayres]

Flowerchild - at some point I just may send a few to people on the forum that are interested - just for the cost of shipping. I've never shipped any before - so I don't know the in's and out's of how this should be done? Bare root vs. potted. Special packing considerations?
Seems like I have read somewhere there are issues about shipping plants back and forth between Canada and the US - does anyone know if there is an issue here or not?

[kmarch]

Things You Can Do With Your Extra Divisions

1) donate them to your local orchid society or regional judging centre for them to sell off or auction
2) sell them on eBay (not internationally of course)
3) group them together to make a larger display
4) see if anyone in your local society or elsewhere wants to trade some divisions
5) bloom them and give them away as a suprise gift while they are n bloom

Do you show your plants at orchid society meetings or orchid shows? If so, consider not dividing them and allowing them to grow into larger specimen-size plants for a more spectacular display! I managed to win a Certificate of Cultural Merit from the AOS for a Cattleya I grew in my home (not in a greenhouse) which I did not divide and let grow up into a nice, big, specimen plant with around 50 flowers.

[slippery_biscuit]

I started a notebook when the stack of loose records became hard to control. I need the data to remind me of the care requirements for the different types. Also includes a picture as some of them won't bloom for awhile (years?) and I'll know what it supposed to grow into.

Having run out of room I must turn to maximizing the potential of those in hand. Still have an eye out for the oddities. I'm pretty sure that a big part of getting into this is the variety of plant and blooms that orchids produce. I whip up a latte in the morning and look at the clumps of flowers hanging from my Dend amethystoglossum and then the huge spidery flowers on the Brassia Witch Doctor and think, "these are both orchids!".

Say, not to change the subject, but this thread is following a loose lead anyways, has anyone used one of those small evaporative coolers to cool and add humidity to a small greenhouse??

Jeff

[kmarch]

Dear slippery_biscuit,

Yes I have used them, not in a greenhouse but in a small glass orchid room (sun room). It was quite effective and even in the dryest part of the year I was able to maintain a minimum of 40-50% humidity. I was quite happy with it.

-Kevin