Hi Teach !! Just wanted to ask. Did the kids commission that or did one of the parents find it by accident? So happy --you are happy !! Teachers, parents, clergy. All so very important in our lives. My "fav" teacher died 3 weeks ago. I had her in the 11th grade. She was 85 when she died. You would not believe the outpouring of love from her 25 years of students. She brought every book we read to life with her knowledge and enthusiasm. The Scarlet Letter never had such a good Hester !! Congrats and I know you will have bright and fun students next year, as your personality will bring out the best in them. Cece

Is it certain that your mother's plant is a Phalaenopsis? To "hear" you describe it as though it has leaves in ranks of two, and its environment as very humid, and its watering so frequent, I'm wondering whether you might have an orchid I can't name, but which Jane-NY called her "Fat Boy," before her move to southern climes. ?? I live in an entirely different climate (dry) in NorCal, but my large phal would never survive such frequent watering. If what you have is actually a phal; and if it is as robust as the picture by google; I would advise you to do everything exactly as your mother did---except, perhaps, that you keep the dust off and move the plant to within about a foot of very bright, but indirect light (ESE or so). Its color should be more of a medium green; not so dark green as in the picture. It should also be near a window in the fall, so that it will be able to get the temp drop at night for spike set. It sounds like a great plant; please post a pic when it blooms!

If you refer to them as Lilium Tigrinum everyone will immediately know what you're dealing with... as opposed to the "ditch lilies" many find pesky. Your tigers are the easiest of the lilies to grow and have great success with. They just never seem to disappoint especially if you've got a sunny spot with good drainage. Personally, I would not soak them - just crumble the soil away from the bulbs by hand to separate them out then plant the bulbs at least 6" deep... the top of the bulb below where the stem starts should be the 6" beneath the soil line. They're tough, you can't hurt them even if you accidently break off a stalk which by now should be starting to yellow out. Water them in and forget them till they emerge in the spring. Check out the Lilies Forum, too. Aside from getting the lilies into the ground - I'd probably spend this time preparing any future planting beds and making a few elimentary plans before doing any planting. There are all kinds of ground covers - from Uva-Ursi (bearberry) or Sedums like Dragon's Blood to creeping Junipers, etc. What do you like and what do you want to look at from what vantage point; and are you planting things for your own pleasure or for curb appeal? Think you'll be happier with any results by working out a basic plan.

Adele, I'll try to make this quick. Soil: fast draining, well aerated, quick drying. For rooting, 50% perlite or vermiculite and 50% coir (can eventually be replaced with cactus soil - not sure.) For planting, same qualities as above. Search this forum for "gritty mix". Water once when you plant the cuttings and do not water again till you see plenty of roots in your clear plastic bottles. Rooting hormones are not necessary - per se. Can be good, but many people found no difference. Personally, I use Clonex gel every once in a while. Especially on tough to root varieties. You definitely won't have to wait one year to see a leaf. You better not. Ha! Cuttings of decent quality should root in 6-8 weeks, some take longer, but you definitely should see growth. Flowers is a different story. Being in zone 5a myself; I can say that you eventually have to wait longer than two seasons to see blooms, but two seasons is a good time frame - do not expect too much and maybe they will surprise you. As for the rocks in the pots, many people use larger pebbles to weigh down their pots, so they won't get blown over. Additionally, the rocks collect heat over the day and release it over night, which is nice but these rocks can get pretty hot too and burn the base of your cuttings. I'd be careful. My plumeria go outside when night time lows are above 45F, usually around late April/May. They are out till the end of Sept./sometimes well into October. I watch for the same night time lows there. They should get as much sun as possible. Hope this clears some of your questions. Happy rooting and growing!