Should I wait to mount?

[liquidmojo]

I just finished my custom orchidarium for my Dracula vampira, and after a few days of running it to make sure everything worked properly, I placed my baby into her new home!!! She is a seedling probably one to two years away from blooming for the first time, and I got her from Hoosier orchids in a 2 1/2" pot. My question is can I mount her now, or is there a better time to mount a Dracula? I.E. wait till she's older, a certian time of year? I don't know...but that's why I joined this site!!! Any information would be greatly appreciated! <-That's just funny! I love it!

[kmarch]

I don't usually see Draculas mounted, I usually see them grown in net pots so the flowers can come out the bottom. I can't think of a good reason not to try mounting them though.... I like to repot my Masdevallias in the autumn so they're not dealing with summer heat and repotting stress at the same time. This might apply to mounting too.

Maybe some fo the other Dracula growers can weigh in on this.

[liquidmojo]

Thanks! I haven't found out if the plant is too young yet, but I have found info on mounting Draculas!

[Ellen]

Yes, Draculas are often grown in net pots, but there's no reason they can't be mounted. Drac vampira grows fast and gets pretty big (for a Dracula) as you probably know. Most epiphytic orchids can be mounted any time of year and at any age, although the very best time is when there's new root growth. However, for a plant that's struggling in a pot, mounting it will often kick-start new root growth. Doesn't sound like that's an issue with your plant, though. Good luck.

[liquidmojo]

Thanks! I decided to try it. (This will be my first mounting!) I am waiting on my order of grapewood to arrive so I can get started! I never thought that growing Orchids could be so much fun!