cyps in pots 2012

[Brian Ellis]

Thanks for the vote of confidence Angie, it's a reassurance.  We are just back from the Royal Norfolk Show so I must scout round and start planting some of our hoard of pots from Long Acre etc.

[Stephen Vella]

Thanks Maren for the fertilizer recommendation. I found some information on the chemistry side of things and other readers might be interested to know...
http://hydrodynamicsintl.com/orchidfocusmain.htm

And I'm happy to read that it does not contain Urea or Ammonia that can be harmful. But I was really surprised at how low the NPK is.

Now to get it posted here   

[Neil]

Stephen it is sold in Australia

http://www.growthtechnology.com.au/psl4/0/focus-range

 

[Stephen Vella]

thanks Neil

[monocotman]

Hi,

I thought I'd initiate a review of the year's growth.
It's been a strange up and down year - some of the cyps didn't come through the winter at all well and I've lost a couple of plants. I saw rot on the leaves in the very wet spring for the first time ever.
However overall the growth has been good with all the plants enjoying the wet cool summer.
The plants that did well did really well - here are a few photos of some which increased well.
First up is ventricosum pale from Frosch. This had 4 growths in the spring but just two were flowering size(FS).There are now 11 buds for next year, most being FS.
Next up is the hybrid Bill ( pubescens x tibeticum). This one had three growths in the spring, with just two FS.
There are now 8 buds for next year.
There has been a similar rate of increase with the hybrids Maria and Ingrid.
This rate of increase seems to be fairly common with hybrids that are 3-4 growths.
They tend to slow down as they get bigger.
I'll post a few others as they die down but there are still several plants that are green,

Regards,

David

[Botanica]

The cyp for the next season !

Good growing in my substrate.

It's Cyp.parviflorum



Cyp.kentuchiense



Cyp.japonicum

[monocotman]

Hi,
nice roots Botanica!
A similar couple of photos of a nice form of tibeticum.
This plants has lived in the same compost and pot for 5 seasons.
In 2008 it was a single FS growth. Today there are 20 new buds for next spring and I thought that it merited a larger pot.
The first photo shows a problem with pot growing - the discoloured parts of the compost at the front are worm burrows. They are an occupational hazard of pot growing for me but take 2-3 years before the build up of humus in the pot from their activities starts to impact on the plants.
I could put fine wire mesh over the holes in the bottom of the pot but that my also affect drainage over time so I don't bother.
The point is that cyps take time to build up size, especially species and a compost of perlite allows them to do this with no danger of compost breakdown.

When I repotted this plant I managed to find just a single rotten root in the entire pot - the rest were all hard and active - another benefit of an inorganic free draining compost.

The plant has doubled in size this year after several years of much gentler increase - maybe due to the cool weather.
 It must also have been frozen several cm deep during the winter of 2010/11 so the roots must be very hardy,
Regards,
David

[Botanica]

Extra monocotman !

Have you other species of Cypripedium ?

My cyp have only two years of culture actually. I hope they grow as your's ...I see that in few years !

My cypri hivernage place



Some new buds in other specimen

[angie]

Are you potting up your Cyps now ?

Angie 

[monocotman]

Angie - I'm repotting them now.
I have heard that cyps recover from repotting more quickly when they're still active so we'll see next year.

Botanica - I've a few of the usual cyp species but they're not my main area of interest.
I know that this may be sacreligous to some but I prefer hybrids - they're so much easier and quicker to grow to a decent size.

David

[angie]

Angie - I'm repotting them now.
I have heard that cyps recover from repotting more quickly when they're still active so we'll see next year.
David

I would prefer to do mine now as sometimes I never get the things I want done in early spring. David when you are splitting them is it ok to cut it at the top, not sure how to explain it.  I can tease the roots apart ok but just can't get them divided at the top 

Angie 

[monocotman]

Angie,
I don't have too much experience of splitting cyps - I've done it rarely with variable results and have not enjoyed the process.
It is not easy.
Some of the 'split' plants can go backwards or not appear in the following spring.
You have to be prepared for losses.
Even the plants that grow take at least a couple of years to recover their full strength.
You have to have a good reason for doing it.
Have you seen the tutorial (with lots of photos) on splitting cyps on Michael Wienert's web site?
The recommendation here is do it to any plant over about a dozen buds and to pull and tear the rhizomes apart after washing them rather than cut them.
But is takes quite a bit of brute strength. It is suppose to reduce the chances of rot on the cut end of the rhizomes.
I've tried and failed to do this with hybrids as the mass of divided rhizomes are so congested with the roots.
Maybe because I'm growing the plants in pots everything is just too close together.
It may work more easily with species where the rhizomes are less branched and the roots fewer.
The only possible answer is a very sharp knife or scissors!
It is easy to cut lots of roots during the process - try to avoid this.
Also try to keep rhizomes damp or wet when you're splitting them - they're ultra sensitive to drying out.
My best results were when I used a bucket of water to clean the roots and then split them just afterwards.
If it were easier and the results more consistent, I would do it more often - I'd like to 'back up' special plants like the tibeticum above.
It would be nice to be able to split a 20 growth plant into 5 sections of 4 growths and for them all to grow away merrily and flower the following season. But it is a gamble.
I've ended up taking bits of more easily accessible rhizome from the edges of a plant rather than go for the jugular.
So - if you're determined it is possible but be prepared for a bit of a fight!
David

[Peter Maguire]

I remember going to a talk at the autumn bulb display in Dundee quite a few years ago where Kath Dryden was giving a talk on propagation. Having discussed various bulb propagation techniques she moved on to Cypripediums and held up a moderately sized Cyp rhizome and a sharp knife before saying that she was not going to demonstrate the actual procedure in the talk as a large whisky was required (for the owner) before attempting the procedure!

[brianw]

Kath had a wonderful pot of C. californicum for a number of years. I asked her about division, and she said she had never had the courage with this one. A couple of years later I think she had lost it. Maybe she took the plunge.

[Maren]

About disentangling cypripedium roots when splitting: all you need is a bucket of water & patience.

Water:  I leave the plant to soak in water for 30 minutes. This will soften the roots sufficiently to turn from brittle to pliant.
Patience: I look at my watch to make sure I leave the plant in water for long enough.

At the end of immersion, I grab two sections of the plant and pull them apart gently but with determination. They should come apart like a bowl of spaghetti.