Terrestrial orchids 2011 to 2014

[Cyril L]

Ophrys leochroma
Apparently it has the common name of Lion-maned Orchid.

Stunning Ophrys (x2) Steve.  Do you feed them?  I used to grow a few Ophrys species but over the years they have dwindled away.  Maybe in cultivation they need slightly warmer conditions to flourish.  Ophyrs bombyliflora is the only one that has persisted and increased since 2007.  It grows in the plunge with other bulbs in the greenhouse where it sometimes go below 0 deg C.

[SteveC2]

Bang goes my theory!

[Steve Garvie]

Thanks Cyril!
I think the heat helps. I also use an oscillating fan on a timer which seems to keep the rosettes in better health and dries off any water spills on the leaves. In the old days I lost quite a few to neck rot but this hasn't been an issue so far under the "new regime".
I've been watering with one eighth strength tomato feed and then flush alternate waterings using rain water. The compost has almost no organics but does contain a liberal sprinkling of "volcanic dust" for trace elements (or is it pixie dust with no real value?).

That said I have grown most species for only a couple of seasons, keeping them going long term is probably beyond me!

[Steve Garvie]

Steve, I nipped off to the other thread to read it.
I gather you are suggesting that the "thermal shock" that a tuber experiences coming from a Greek summer to a UK autumn stimulates early growth. It sounds a reasonable theory!

Last summer I was abroad for most of July. My ophrys were in a dry sand plunge in the greenhouse with good ventilation but no shade. When I returned home I feared they would be frazzled and so I repotted them in an in-organic mix of pumice, perlite and Seramis-sustitute (Tesco cat litter). At the time I washed the cat litter and wet the perlite (to avoid inhaling the dust) but then became worried as I had potted up my orchids in a damp mix. I can't be sure but I suspect that this damp mix in clay pots may have contributed to the Ophrys rising early.

[Steve Garvie]

Himantoglossum robertianum
I still think of this plant as Barlia robertiana.
I have two plants, the one below is the first to flower, is quite pale in flower but has been particularly vigorous.

[mark smyth]

Ophrys leochroma
Apparently it has the common name of Lion-maned Orchid.

Mine have spikes rising. Cant wait to see the flowers

[mark smyth]

I grow them in a heated partitioned section of the greenhouse with South African bulbs -the temperature hasn't dropped below +5C  in there all winter.

The heat hasn't been on it my plunge all winter. Only one death so far

[Maggi Young]

Himantoglossum robertianum
I still think of this plant as Barlia robertiana.
I have two plants, the one below is the first to flower, is quite pale in flower but has been particularly vigorous.

 We've always called it Robinson's Barley Water -  not that we grow it. I  think it is a super plant, often so  chunky and substantial and I always enjoy sniffing the delicious fragrance when I see it on a show bench.  Wonderful scent!

Might you be able to show it at the Dunblane Early Bulb Day, Steve?

[Steve Garvie]

Thanks Maggie!
Unfortunately with work commitments as they currently are (my senior colleague retires this month with no replacement as yet) I won't make any weekend shows for the foreseeable future sadly! 

[Maggi Young]

Thanks Maggie!
Unfortunately with work commitments as they currently are (my senior colleague retires this month with no replacement as yet) I won't make any weekend shows for the foreseeable future sadly! 

 That's a pity - on all counts.

[SteveC2]

Steve, I nipped off to the other thread to read it.
I gather you are suggesting that the "thermal shock" that a tuber experiences coming from a Greek summer to a UK autumn stimulates early growth. It sounds a reasonable theory!

That is a brilliant summation of my theory!  I just noticed over the past three years that "new" tubers from the Med started into growth up to two months earlier than old favourites, even if they were the same species.  Perhaps a late English summer has temperatures equal to a Greek autumn?

I love "Barlias".  Because it is so cold the flowers last for ages.  The scent of my pair has been filling my greenhouse for the past couple of weeks and will for weeks to come, by which time I have another two to open.  And yes, the two in flower are newbies!

[Maren]

Hi,
here is my Paphiopedilum insigne f. sanderae, which spends 10 months of the year on my bathroom window sill, facing north, and looking pretty boring. It gets watered and fed occasionally and has been in the same pot for 4 years. However, around this time it springs into action and this year it got a Gold when I put it on the show table of the Thames Valley Orchid Society.   

[Steve Garvie]

Congratulations Maren!!!
A stunning orchid which clearly deserves a gold!

[Maggi Young]

Congratulations Maren!!!
A stunning orchid which clearly deserves a gold!

Isn't it just! Superb specimen, Maren.

[GordonT]

Hi,
here is my Paphiopedilum insigne f. sanderae However, around this time it springs into action and this year it got a Gold when I put it on the show table of the Thames Valley Orchid Society.   

What a superbly grown plant, and a well earned award, Maren!