mounting Q's

[palefaced&pink]

how do you mount an orchid? and is it much more difficult than potts?

also, is it crucial to my den to have the bamboo stalk for supporting the blooms and spikes? it won't break it'self, right? i pulled it out to check the moisture and it just didn't go back in as esily....

[brookn]

Mounting is not hard, but can be stressful on the plant. I would let some more of the experts weigh in, but if you are considering mounting your den, the best time would be when it is not in bloom, and producing new growth.

It can be hard to get the stake back in, but it helps to support the plant. Dends can be very top heavy, and easily toppled. I have canes on mine that I use supports for, I also use a pot with rocks in the bottom to set my plant in to keep it from toppling. The bamboo stakes can be annoying, and I prefer to use the wire type stakes, you can probably find them in a garden dept, or make them yourself with some stiff wire (wire coat hangers work).

[fred]

for an idea on mounting an orchid have a look here as well

http://www.orchidgeeks.com/forum/orchid-mounting/

[tom499]

brookn makes a good point on time. Depending on your den and where you are in the world, your den could be in growth or sleep, you can tell us that though

If its in sleep, then mounting it will pretty much kill it, as it wont put out new roots to attach and the old roots wont be very good at gripping on either.

But if its in early growth stage mounting is easy as the den will grow, attaching itself to the mount.

As also mentioned, dens can get top heavy, and so some care needs to be taken when mounting with the angle the plant will grow at, and how you attach and support it on.

I'm sure someone here whos mounted one before can help

[Tobi]

I have only mounted keikis from my Dens. I find them the easiest and safest
to mount because they already have aerial roots that are acustomed to
being outside a potting media and are actively growing.

[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

If you are growing indoors in Sacramento, I think you may not have adequate humidity for a mountie, so you may not want to mount it. I have my Dens mostly hanging, and I take a stiff wire, make a circle in one end and bend it perpendicular to the rest of the wire so that I can use it as a pot hanger. The circle is fitted to the pot size so the rim lands on the wire circle. Then I usually put a little jog at the top of the pot to make the hanger hold on to the pot, then put a bend in the other end for hanging. Now you have a built in bamboo stake, by tying the canes to the wire. After 40+ years of growing orchids, this is the best system I have found. Nothing gets stuck into the pot, so you don't have to worry about sterilizing a stake. I buy my plastic pots by the case, so the sizes are very standardized, and the hangers get reused when I have to shift to a larger pot or a taller hanger. If I use the plant for decorating or show and tell, I set the plastic pot into a clay or ceramic pot to hold it upright. Don't like rocks in the bottom. Can't tell when to water, and the voids are good places for snails and slugs to hide. Would never use broken crock in the bottom because of the potential for virus in used crock.

[palefaced&pink]

i don't plan on attempting a mount with my big ol' orchid....but i am hoping for a little keiki! i had a dream the other night i had a wonderful wall full of the cutest, littlest orchids in tea cup mounts, and it looked great! also i read the thread where the orchid was putting off lots of keiki's because of it's growing conditions and that really gave me some ideas...but i would love a really yummy smelling one too, or three or four.

my mother is a fan of A.violets, and it seems the two plants, while having compleatly different needs, are sisters in the fact that they are both "finicky" so, she's put the humidifyer on the den in the morning untill it's good and misted, and it sure looks pretty in the morning light and artificial "fog".

if anything i want a mount just so i can dote on the plant (as if admiration isn't enough)

about the sleeping/growing phase, that peques my interest, as i've never seen an orchid activly grow before. we had a very cold summer here, and it's only been getting about 75-80 in the valley, (normally 100+) and around 50 at night. it's in full bloom right now, and fall has just started, so after it drops all of it's blooms will it go to sleep?

also, my den's bottom blooms are wilting (that's normal, right?) and my sister thought i should clip them off, so the buds that are still strong could grow better, but i thought i might check here about it first..

[Tobi]

I have a pretty good feeling that your dreams of having a keiki or 2 or 3 will
be fullfilled. Most of mine have prduced at least 1 keiki at one time. I don't
think leaving the wilting blooms until they fall off on their own will hurt the
other blooms. If they are that unsightly to you, you can remove them.

[PhalPal]

I tried two mounted dends a while back and found them very difficult to provide for. We are very hot and dry here also, but about 15 degrees cooler than your area. I had the mount on my front porch in shade, indirect light. The moss on the stick just dried out too fast and after missing a few days of drenching they decided to leave me.
Even with my failure, I am glad i gave it a try. Since i do not have a green house my front porch was it's best shot and where it would be enjoyed the most. I just went to a show in San Diego and Andy's Orchids was there; they always have tons of itty bitty mounted cuties. I was sooooo tempted but didn't do it!!! (the poor things deserve a change in life)

i would give it a try with your room set-up inside and a fogger!!

www.andysorchids.com is a good source of information for mounts also.

[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

I used to dream about teensy tiny miniatures, and flying thru them with my microscopic eyes, Now that I actually have had a few that had flowers that small, I think I can do without them. It takes a macro lens on a camera to really see these flowers.

[brookn]

Hi, I should have been more clear, I put the plant in it's pot into another pot with rocks in the bottom for stability. Mine are outside, and we get some stiff winds. Cynthia, I got your advice on using crock a long time ago, now I don't use it in anything lol.