boy am I about to make your day.

Www.andysorchids.com/buildsearch.asp

These people are one of the best vendors in the business and specialize in "orchids on a stick" this search engine let's you select certain parameters like ease of growing, temperature, whether or not its mini, light requirements,etc...for my part I'd recommend the followinng:
haraellas odorata
angraecum didieri
any aerangis ( the angraecum and some of these are white and fragrant)
bulbophullum ambrosia

Happy hunting!

fman - Welcome. For about 18 months, I've been concentrating on minis, which for me means staying 8" or under in height. Great solution to limited space, and the variety is endless - yes, there are mini-orchids with white blossoms and fragrance.

Almost all vendors offer mini-orchids, along with larger plants, and there are numerous, reputable online vendors. Not all vendors describe minis as such, and their definitions vary quite a bit. There are online sources that give heights.

One resource that's been helpful to me is Steven Frowine's "Miniature Orchids." He includes sizes. Amazon has had good prices. Dunno if libraries have it - it came out last fall.

There are two general approaches to growing orchids. Some people see an orchid they like, buy it, and then learn through experience if it will grow and bloom in their cultural conditions in the house or greenhouse - light and temperature range, primarily.

Others match the plant's cultural requirements with the conditions they have before buying, figuring the plant will have a better chance to grow and bloom.

You seem to be the 2nd type. If so, read on.

If you're the first type, skip the rest of this message, go online, find vendors that offer mini-orchids you like, and then search the archives for people's experiences with that vendor. Unfortunately, there are some bad vendors out there, but you can avoid them.

(Right now, to search the archives, you'll need to read recent threads. Searching is weird 'cause GardenWeb is updating their technology.)

Read the rest if you want to match up cultural requirements and your conditions.

Because you live as far north as New York, you won't have enough sunny days in the winter to sustain orchids on natural light alone. I think all of us who live farther north use artificial light to supplement direct sunlight, winter and summer.

So, that's one consideration. You're asking at a good time, because CFLs (compact fluorescent lights) provide good supplemental light and are getting more sophisticated.

Supplemental light aside, there are some other considerations so you can find which orchids will thrive on your windowsill.

Each orchid needs a specific type light - full sun, bright, medium, low; and each needs a specific temperature range - cool, intermediate, or warm. Orchids don't always follow the rules, and some people are able to grow an orchid in conditions it's not supposed to tolerate, but your best bet is to choose orchids that fit your cultural conditions.

So, to nail down your conditions -

What direction does your window face?

During a 24-hour period, what is the temperature range in winter on the windowsill? If the outside temps are fluctuating, you may need to take readings over several days to get the typical range.

If you don't have a maximum/minimum temperature gauge, you can pick one up at Target, etc. for not much. The gauges often measure humidity as well, but that's less important than the temp range.

One fun exercise would be to define miniature for yourself. Some orchids are an inch tall. Some vendors call a 14" orchid "compact" - dangerous word when you're ordering. :)

Also, many of the smaller orchids are mounted on pieces of driftwood, bark, or cork. Just because an orchid's mounted doesn't mean it's a miniature, though. :) The mounted Dendrobium I got, thinking it would be small, came on a 16" long tree branch and had foot-long canes.

Mounted orchids (mounties) need spraying with water at least once a day because they have only a small amount of medium - usually sphagnum moss - for their roots. Some people love the daily routine, others have sworn off mounties because of it. Orchids that are potted typically need watering 1-3 times a week.

So, if you're still reading, ask away. Lots of folks here grow minis and can add to and question my info. Hope this is helpful.

Whitecat8

Uh whitecat? Z7 has more than enough winter light to grow and bloom most orchids on windowsills. I've been doing it for almost 8 years now. And fman did ask away ;)

The Original Poster lives in Zone 5. Not enough light. WC is correct. Very good information.

Jane

NY is Zones 5 and 6 (its a very big state). But to be honest I think too much is made of zones and light. Zones are temperature classifications and any relation to light level is coincidental at best. In spite of this and regardless of what zone the o.p. actually lives in, the description of the light situation as found in the first post leads me to agree with WC and Jane that light will likely prove to be inadequate unless supplemented.

H

thanks everyone for the great information. the windowsill i want to grow these orchids on is a south facing window. the orchids i was thinking about choosing were aerangis didieri, neofinetia falcata and encyclia cochleata. are these easy enough to grow? can you tell me more about their cultural requirements? i was on andysorchids.com website but most of their orchids are stick mounted, i would rather they be in pots. how about j and l orchids? any other vendors you guys know of? thanks again for the help and info. fman

THe usual problem with these sorts of posts is the definition of mini. I have Neofinetia falcata (in a pot) and it is finally about to bloom. Yippee. It is a positive mini and it is a nice looking plant even without blooms.
Encyclia cochleata a mini? more like a medium.
Haven't tried to grow Aerangis didieri

I see J&L orchids every once in a while because of our society events. They have great plants and are very nice people.
~Jem

Well,I live in zone 4. I have an Slc.Memoria Alvin Begeman 'Poem',a very pretty yellow and red mini. It grows in my bay window which has 3 windows facing northeast,east and southeast.'Poem' is in the northeast window but does get some light from the others. It was in bloom when I purchased it in May 2007,and right now has 3 blossoms which opened about Dec. 29,2007 and are still in good shape. A very satisfactory little plant,but not fragrant unfortunately.

Nancy

fman, I am relatively new to orchids, and I find Neofinetia falcata very easy to grow. You should be able to find that one potted, but I don't know about the Aerangis (I think it's usually sold mounted). Here are some links on Neos, with some cultural notes you can compare: 1,2,3,4,

Since I live in zone 9/10, I have little trouble growing orchids, aside from stoopid mistakes I might make with them. Oops!

Here is a close-up of my Den. mini-brown.
IMHO, the small sprial flowers are stunning!

{{gwi:140405}}

fman,

Aerangis dideri should not be a problem, however you might have a few issues with Neofinetia falcata and Encyclia cochleata. The latter two require more light and, while a South window is great, the fact is that, just like Whitecat8 mentioned, it's not always sunny out (especially at this time of year) and many things, such as your windows, trees, other buildings and even pollution, can reduce the amount of usable light your plants actually get. Which is where supplemental light comes in. This is what makes the difference between a nice plant and a nice plant with flowers. And who are we kidding - we all want those flowers!

Beyond light, those plants pretty much grow in intermediate temperatures (towards the warmer end for Encyclia and Aerangis, and the Neofinetia likes cool winters), water when the medium is dry without leaving it dry for long periods (the Encyclia can stand a few dry spells). Aerangis generally grow much better mounted, and so require slightly higher humidity.

Hope this helps.

Julie

- Angraecum didieri is a wonderful miniature, and suited for windowsills. Mine were never happy potted, so I'd recommend mounting or propping in an empty clay pot.

- E. cochleata is not a miniature, at least by my def. My (late) plant was bursting from a 7" pot and the spikes ran at least 2-3 feet high.

- Neo. falcata is also a great choice. Stays small, beautiful in all seasons. Probably the easiest to grow of those listed here.

- Dendrobium unicum. A neat mini dend, only 3-4" high, 2" pot. Gorgeous orange flowers. Light more toward the lower, dend-phal intensity. Drawback: deciduous, so the plant looks like a cluster of dead sticks for about 5 months of the year. Positive: you can mostly ignore it during the winter.

- Rupicolous laelias from Brazil, including L. milleri, briegeri, lucasiana, liliputiana, mixta, etc. Small plants (usually under 6") with nice flowers. Needs more light than the plants above, and will definitely need a summer outdoors.

- Mini dend hybrid and mini catt hybrid people, what say ye? Gotta be some good, cast-iron miniatures out there.

(Sorry for the powerpoint style post.)

fman, if you search Andy's site for miniatures, you'll get a good list plus cultural requirements. Then you can check out other vendors for your faves - you'll likely find them potted.

For light requirements, a good rule of thumb is to bump up the vendor's by at least one level. When Andy's says bright, indirect light, the plant may require direct light to bloom in the house. Maybe because the greenhouse plants get so much more natural light, including from overhead.

It's maddening that what's easy to grow for one person can be impossible for someone else, even though the plant's supposed to be a no-brainer. I may not be able to grow Neos, for example. They're not thriving.

Terpguy & Nancy, I'm envious that you can grow in windows with no supplemental lighting. Sounds wonderful. Come to think of it, one of our experienced OS members grows even vandas w/ no supplemental light. She has a room w/ glass on 3 sides.

fman, keep us posted. Whitecat8

I'd add sedirea japonica, bulbophyllum laxiflorum, cymbidium ensifolium, oncidium 'Twinkle' osmoglossum pulchellum and tuberolabium kotoense to the list of small, pretty easy to grow, fragrant, and white or have white forms available.

They should all be able to flower under your light conditions, but always check the cultural guidelines for each orchid. Enjoy!

Jim

Mini Oncidiums do great for me in a west window in winter. Bright indirect sun outside after last frost. I leave mine out in the fall to cool down to initiate spiking. Blooms last a LONG TIME! I have a Carnival costume STILL in bloom after 2 months!

Tom

Angraecum scottianum, compactum, equitans, didieri, elephantinum, obesum, and many others, fit your criteria, if you add some additional light.

Cadetia taylori comes to mind though its not fragrant. There are probably a ton of Dendrobium species that would fit those specs. But when you say mini, fragrant, and white, you pretty well paint yourself into an Ang corner. There is no better place to be, if you ask me.
-MB