Bruce,
I do not grow this species and it would struggle to get through summer in my shade house near the coast in Eastern NSW.

Here is what David L Jones writes in Native Orchids of Australia.

"This orchid is restricted to highland beech forests above 800 metres altitude, but it is often locally plentiful. It grows almost exclusively on the Antarctic Beech (Nothofagus moorei) and the branches of old trees may be completely festooned with large, dense clumps of this orchid. Clumps are sometimes seen on Coachwood (Ceratopetalum operalum) and rarely on rocks. Its flowers exude a strong, spicy perfume which is readily discernable."

AND

Highly prized for its floral displays, this orchid is very easy to grow in cool, humid conditions with plenty of air movement. An ideal species for shadehouse culture in temperate regions, plants are best grown in pots of coarse potting mix.

Rentoul says ".....An orchid which is intolerant of glasshouses......Would-be growers should note that it may become rather sulky if tried in warm, humid conditions. A lead should be taken from the nature of the habitat, high in the mountains, with ample fresh air, dramatic climate changes, even snow in the winter."

Sorry not to be of more help, i have not tried to grow it because it has a reputation of being difficult.

I'm hardly an expert grower of falcorostrum. I've seen plenty of books refer to them as a very easy species but I've never heard anyone refer to them as such in person (and I live in Victoria which is supposed to be one of the better places to grow them). They're not difficult but you wouldn't lose face if you killed one. In my experience they prefer coolish conditions, especially in winter. Warm summers are OK so long as you can get the temperature down in winter. My temps get down to 0oC on winter nights and the plants don't have a problem. I understand that it's more difficult to grow with a warmer winter. Mine get the same light levels as my kingianums. They are in a shallow pot/tray in a mix of coarse bark and scoria (lava rock) ie the don't like wet feet. You could probably mount it but I've never tried it and I can't say I've seen many people growing them mounted in my area. I have it in the back of my mind that they're slow to attach to a mount but I can't say where I read that nor am I certain that it was this species they were talking about.
HTH

Arthur posted as I was typing so I would like to make one note of comparison. If you look up the temperature difference between eastern NSW, where Arthur says he wouldn't be able to grow them, and southern Victoria, where they are easier, it's only a few degrees difference. I've also heard that growers as far south as NSW can struggle with falcorostrum, so there's only a few degrees leeway for making this species happy.

Thank you so much, both of you, for taking the time to help. I really appreciate it!

Hopefully, I plan to build a cool house for my plants, but that might take a couple of years to complete. Sounds like falcorostrum really needs temperate humidity, with a good winter chill-down. Until I get a better gh, I'll "fake it" by bringing it inside to a sunny window when it gets too hot outside.

I'm trying to imagine what the trunks of the Antarctic Beech trees look like up close, and from the photos I've seen they look like they're covered with damp moss. Sounds like if I keep the roots "evenly moist" and avoid allowing them to dry out, that's probably a good bet. Growing in a pot makes that more difficult, as it seems too easy to overwater. Guess that's why the open mixes work so well -- but I have to confess that growing it that way makes me a little nervous given my failure before!

My first try with this species was when I was just getting started with the hobby several years ago, and it bloomed for me that first season. The fragrance was like nothing I've ever had the pleasure of enjoying since then, and it's easily one of my favorite species. Hope I can get it "dialed-in" correctly this time!

Thanks again!

Since you asked, Bruce, I would like to offer the following: from reading the other posts it sounds like you are really setting yourself up for another disappointment in growing this plant UNLESS you radically change your approach to culturing it to minimize the effects of the area of the country you live in. It might at first appear counter-intuitive but when one is attempting to culture a cool growing species in a warm area of the country a location outside actually works much better than a greenhouse, even a 'cool' greenhouse because of the cooling effect that air exchange has on the leaves. Indoors with A/C is a possibility provided that you do something about the humidity because all A/C has a dehumidifying effect except evaporative cooling which does not function in high ambient humidiities.

"Sounds like if I keep the roots "evenly moist" and avoid allowing them to dry out, that's probably a good bet. Growing in a pot makes that more difficult, as it seems too easy to overwater."

Why would growing in a pot make keeping roots evenly moist more difficult?? It doesn't. Discovering why you found this the case will help you 'dial in' culture. One reason may be light. In low light, you will overwater whether you mean to or not. In higher light it will be much harder to overwater even if you are keeping the mix very moist.

H

Bruce,
Regarding my comment falcorostrum not taking to mounts, the source was Cultivation of Australian Native Orchids by Richards et al. The advice refers to large plants. Small plants should attach OK. As for watering, water it as you would any other mounted Den.

Howard,
I'm a bit confused by you comment about Bruce trying to grow a cool growing species in a warm part of the country. Not so much the advice but rather the inference that Bruce lives in a 'warm' part of the country. Now I'm quite removed from US climates and USDA maps but in Australia Bruce's USDA zone 8a would not be considered warm. While the maximums are probably higher, zone 8a minimums are what we get in our southern alpine regions. I was assuming he'd need to grow this species indoors, which would definitely be too warm. If Bruce can overwinter this species in a cool greenhouse (Cymbidium temperature) and grow it outside for the rest of the year the temperature should be OK.

Thank you Howard, and again, corymbosa, for adding additional thoughts.

Howard -- I like to avoid pots as much as possible in my collection, but there are cases when they are, of course, necessary. Most dens and catts I have in clay slatted pots with arcillite, to provide good drainage and maximize air flow. However, I believe that clay and Den. falcorostrum may not be a good combination, because it sounds like it prefers a gentle "evenness" to the dampness the roots encounter -- which clay pots do not easily provide. They're either very wet, or very dry, with little "in-between" time.

My experience with plastic pots (as the plant is now contained) is that especially with organic mixes, plastic pots remain much too wet inside, given the necessary watering practices within a moderate-sized mixed collection to keep everything "happy". Without fail, every single plant I've ever received from a nursery potted in plastic ALWAYS has an excessive amount of rotted roots. I don't have the luxury of watering things differently, so, I adjust the type of mix, pot, mount, etc., to compensate for the even dispersal of water. (I have hung a temporary plastic curtain to keep my nobile dendrobium and Cyrtopodium punctatum dry during the winter months.)

I have a ramshackle greenhouse made of a 2x4 frame with UV-resistant greenhouse fabric stapled to it. Because of the compromises of such a flimsy design, I can't exhaust very well, and temperatures can soar up to 105F (40.5C) in the summer (90s near the floor) during the warmer months. In the winter, I try to button it up tight and double-insulate with a second interior layer of plastic, so that my 1500-watt heater can keep things from freezing. I have to watch carefully, because when the sun hits it during the day and I have it tightly closed, temps will shoot back up to 100F unless I prop open the door. It's a nightmare, but I'm trying to make it work until I can build a better one.

I know too well the benefits of humidity, which is one of the reasons I have to compromise with the tightness of the enclosure. If I open it up more to help it cool off, I let the often extremely low outside humidity in, which is bad when coupled with air movement. So, I was thinking during the warmer months I'd bring the falcorostrum inside, although, the A/C will cause it to dry out quickly. (I also keep a Holcoglossum amesianum indoors for the same reason.) However, I don't want to make this a "precedent", because the care required for orchids such as these indoors is more than I want to do for more than one or two.

Corymbosa -- it would definitely simplify things if I could trust this orchid outside, but our conditions are anything but moderate, even though we get quite cold during the winter. The worst part is the extreme dryness when it hasn't rained in a while. You wouldn't expect that with us living so near the Gulf of Mexico, but I've taken readings as low as 18% in the springtime. Even when things are damp after a rain, we never approach the humidity I would expect in one of your temperate rainforests.

My proposed greenhouse is going to have an active "chiller" to cool and humidify incoming air (my own design), with a solar floor to help heating in the winter. Thermostats instead of timers, so things will be more precisely controlled. I believe I can keep midday daytime temps even in the hottest months below 85F (29C) and better than 75% humidity. I'm not too concerned about the nighttime winter temps -- my collection has gone down to 32F (outside temps into the low 20s) with no ill effects. But the solar floor will certainly ease the expense of running the heater constantly, and I won't have to live in fear of the heater failing and losing my collection.

Thanks for finding that reference about mounting falcorostrum. I have the best luck with my collection when things are mounted or in baskets, and it's my preferred method of culture. I'm loathe to experiment with falcorostrum, though! I remember another member, CharlesB, growing his specimen in a large basket, but I don't know the details. I think that's the way Aussie "Keith" grew his too, as well as in rotting logs on the ground...although I can't remember the exact details. His outdoor conditions were pretty close to perfect, so it actually wasn't very helpful for me to try to relate his setup to mine, because he didn't have to modify his growing conditions that much.

Thanks again!

Bruce

Bruce,

I just picked up one of these from Andy's. Where did you get yours? I brought up that I was worried about my summer heat and he didn't think it would be a problem as long as I could provide a cool down in winter. I'm going to put mine in a clay pot with lava rock and keep it close to the misters in summer.

Troy

I have a few specimens. The ones that did tbe best grew in shade, some.with no direct light whatsoever and cold. They rarely got above 70 I the shade and they always blooms. They are as easy as kingianums but dont ever let their pseudobulbs shrivel.