Spring, where are you?

We had a very warm winter here, so I was looking forward to spring.  But just as it was supposed to start warming up, we got cold.  We still haven't made it to the beach yet this year, way too cold. I feel bad for the spring breakers, they look forward to a nice warm week at the beach, but they are running around in sweatshirts instead of bathing suits :)

But even though it's been cold, the plants are responding.  Spring blooming Cattleyas, intermedia and loddigesii are in their full glory right now, with a bumper year for blooms.  Guarianthe aurantiaca, Guarianthe skinneri and Guarianthe Guatemalensis are all in advanced bud.  My Catasetums for the most part have started growing again.  Hoyas have come back to life, and some are even in bud this early for me. 

But the Dendrobiums are really beginning to put on a show.  Here are a few of them.

D. draconis.  According to Baker and Baker, this orchid is suspected to be the most common orchid in the wild. I picked up a small seedling a couple years ago, and mounted it.  It receives typical Dendrobium care, lots of sun and water in the warmer months, reduced watering in the colder months.  This also is one I leave outside through the winter, and it seems to take whatever Mother Nature tosses at it.  This is my first blooming on what is still a small plant.

And next Dendrobium speciosum v. pendunculatum.  I think most speciosums are pretty big plants, but v. pendunculatum stays smaller.  I'm growing it with lots of water and sun during the warmer months, and put in a complete dry, but very bright area in winter.  Although it doesn't get watered, it does have dew most mornings.  Last year it gave me one spike, this year two, maybe in 5 years I'll have a show!

And now one of my favorites.  Dendrobium gracilicaule.  The flowers are not very impressive, and honestly I think the buds are actually prettier, as it has spotting on the backside, which you see during the bud stage. So why is it a favorite?  First is the frangrance, it smells just like Fruit Loops to me  lol.  Second, it is the most reliable bloomers, as well as being one of the first Dendrobium species I ever bloomed.  Growing mounted, same culture as the speciosum, but just a bit less light in winter.



I'm going to finish up with another first bloomer for me.  Dendrobium nobile, hv. cooksonianum.  Why do so many people claim they have nobile, but it is obviously a hybrid?  I think the online orchid forum people don't even know there is a species called nobile.  Seriously!  I have seen so many many posts calling their plant nobile.  Or nobile type or whatever they feel like calling it.  First of all the Section is Dendrobium, not Nobile.  Second the type of this section is actually moniliforme.  So why???

Ok done with my rant.  The only thing that irritates me more is the whole potbound/rootbound old wives tale that people put out about Dendrobiums.  But I'll save that for another day.

Anyways, I'm not very thrilled that the flowers didn't fully open.  It is a first bloom, but it has 17 spikes on 3 canes, so I'm not very hopeful that it will open better next year. We will see.  When I first bought this plant, it was labeled v. cooksonianum.  But I couldn't find any information on it.  Then one day while reading the  proceedings from an orchid meeting/conference from the late 1800s, I came upon the name.  It refers to nobiles that have the color of the lip at the base of the petals.  So semi-peloric. Since it is not an actual variety, I've decided to call it hv.  Right or wrong? First a picture of the buds.

ok, that's it for today, this is long enough.  I do have a bunch of different hv of D. moniliforme in bloom, but I want to do a separate thread, capturing the flowers and leaves of all of them.

Until next time.