Why dont you try some of the smaller Oncidium species like longipes or jonesianum. I have several mounted on plaques and they all do very well, esp if they get some direct sunshine. They are not bothered about high humidity and provided you give them a good soaking twice a week in summer - very little in winter - you will get some delightful blooms and PS they are not all yellow! Another fairly small plant that does very well mounted and doesn't mind some direct sunlight is Brassavola nodosa ( or any of the Brassavolas).

I am not positive about my light levels. My light meter should arrive tomorrow. My camera guess-timation puts my fluorescent-lighted shelves at 2000 fc at 3-4 inches from the lights, but I suspect it is higher. The eastern windows get measurably more light for at least part of the morning--and one window gets considerably more than the other because of the angle of the sun's ascent--but fade by noon or 1:00 pm. Actually I consider one window my "shade" window and one my "bright" window, though they both face east. I will undertake a more accurate survey of window light levels once the meter arrives.

I also have two western windows--again, one shadier than the other--but have avoided putting any plants in them because I have had warnings against intense afternoon light in western windows. Have I been steered wrong in this?

ifaser, I am glad to hear you think I might grow Oncidiums. They are captivating, but I wonder if my light levels are adequate...

In the spring/fall, my temps inside can occasionally fall into the 50s F, but usually dip to about 60F, with peaks in the mid-to-upper 70s. In winter I go to about 64°F at night and 68°F during the day--not much variation. In summer I am usually at about 74°F at night and 80°F during the day, unless we have a pleasant temperate day (like we have had many of this summer), when the temps are like the spring/fall temps.

Given the added description of my setup here, do you have any particular suggestion for plants?

How are your Phaphs and Phals doing? Are you getting blooms? Where do you live? Zone 4? Why mounts? Humidity levels would have to be 'somewhat controlled' with mounts.

I tend to grow all of my orchids in higher light than recommended.

Please give more information on your growing conditions and climate, also how your other plants are growing.

Jane

I have Oncidium longipes. The flowers though not spectacular last ages. BUT. it is grown outside all year and gets hours of filtered sun every day.

Must be tough because it is on a cork mount and withstands extremes of heat and cold and low and high humidity during the course of a year.

If your Phals are doing OK why not try some of the Phal. and Doritis species to give you a bit of variety and interest.

As for Phal. compatibles perhaps try a Maudiae Paphiopedilum.

Jane, any info about my set up, light, temps, and humidity that isn't in my post directly above yours is probably in my first post in this thread. Is there a specific aspect you are looking for that I didn't include?

I live in Iowa and grow my orchids indoors. Humidity is easy in the summer, tough in the winter, which is long here.

My phals and paphs grow very well, bloom wonderfully, etc. I just am not ready to get more of the same. I suppose I could get into collecting Paph species or something, but I'm really longing for a little variety--and I admit to a a certain inclination for the strange.

Mounts are not a must, nor are minis I suppose. I was just trying to maximize my small space.

Hi, Charlie,

My comments on watering mounties are in your other thread. As for other minis, check out Steven Frowine's "Miniature Orchids." I've been growing orchids only for 3+ years and am concentrating on smaller orchids now. This book has been helpful.

One question about your East-facing windows - are your shelves w/ the T8s up against the windows, so plants get light from the sun and the T8s? Are the shelves somewhere else in the room?

Regardless, my set up is similar to yours - 5'x 5' E/SE windows, two sets of 4' T8s, winter temps from 60-75F; summer, from the low 70s-mid-80s. Humidity from 30%-high 50%. Air movement from an oscillating table fan, when the windows aren't open.

Small/mini orchids, omitting Phals & Paphs - almost all have rebloomed; others are new:
1. Baptistonia echinata
2. Brassavola nodosa, var. grandiflora - ordinarily not small, but the leaves are tied so they grow straight up, and the plant takes up little room.
3. Cischweinfia pusilla
4. Dendrobium aberrans - lots of show for the small size - long-lasting sprays of fragrant flowers that can bloom from old pseudobulbs
5. Dendrobium atroviolaceum - same thing, except no fragrance
6. Dendrobium ceraula (gonzalesii) - same pluses as aberrans, used to be mounted
7. Dendrobium Himezakura 'Sanokku'
8. Dendrobium unicum - huge, fragrant show for the tiny size
9. Dinema polybulbon - used to be mounted
10. Encyclia bracteata - can't be beat - tiny plant, successively blooming, fragrant, long-lasting flowers; used to be mounted
11. Gastrochilus japonicus
12. Haraella odorata - has it all; formerly mounted
13. Jumellea comorensis
14. Lepanthes manabina, mounted
15. Leptotes bicolor - formerly mounted
16. Masdevallia Celtic Frost
17. Masdevallia erinacea (horrida) - mounted
18. Masdevallia floribunda
19. Maxillaria sophronitis
20. Neofinetia falcatas
21. Oncidium Twinkles - on the largish size of small
22. Ornithocephalus bicornis - another big show for a small plant, but not fragrant; used to be mounted
23. Podangis dactyloceras
24. Scaphosepalum anchoriferum aberrant
25. Sedirea japonica, miniature, white
26. Sl. Marriottiana (flava)
27. Taeniophyllum pygmeas - mounted
28. Tuberolabium kotoense
29. Aerangis biloba - formerly mounted
30. Aerangis fastuosa - formerly mounted

Hope this is helpful.

Whitecat8

I posted a follow-up this morning for whitecat8, but it isn't here, so this is just a test to see what's up.

Hey Whitecat8,

I wrote an appreciative follow-up earlier this morning but somehow it didn't get posted. I must have missed something. I'll try again.

Thanks for your great list--just the kind of thing I've been looking for--and also for your very encouraging post in the watering thread. I enjoy fussing over my plants and am usually around to do so, but now and then I like to go away for the weekend and I would hate to come back to find my prized plants shriveled. Your alternative to mounts is hopeful. I'll stock up on New Zealand sphag.

Is it easy to dismount a plant? I'll probably be placing an order with Andy's and so many of his plants come mounted.

No, my T8s don't supplement window light. They are separate. If that would alter any of your suggestions, please let me know.

It's heartening that you include Gastrochilus in your list. While it was on my initial wish list, I was beginning to understand that it might be very fussy, especially about humidity, and that either I'd have to get a terrarium setup or move to Key West.

Also, if your setup is similar to mine (and it sounds like it is, though your windows are larger) I am a little surprised (and heartened again) to find Neofinetia falcata on your list, since I had come to understand it likes very high light levels.

I have the Frowine book and enjoy it, but his definitions for light levels drive me crazy--as do those of many other authors. Either he is poetically suggestive and inexact (dappled light) or he is exact but uses an odd watt/area formula that doesn't translate easily with HO fluorescent tubes. A bank of my 4 T8 HOs only uses 128 total watts but puts out almost twice the light as four T12s at 160 watts. So by the end, I'm still guessing what he means by medium light. I don't mind that different authors disagree about light levels, but couldn't they at least disagree in the same language--like foot candles, for instance?

Oops! Sorry for the diatribe. I've digressed. :-)

I will print out your list and go over it plant by plant. I really do appreciate all the effort you put into compiling it and I am sorry to reward all your hard work by asking even more questions.

And again, thanks for that watering post, too, which lets me hope I can grow a variety of interesting orchids and still have a life at the same time.

Charlie

My first recomendation would be Tolumnia. Easy to grow under different light situations. Best in east window with morning light. Likes to be mounted, but can be grown in a pot. Blooms for a long period. Don't cut off spike because it can keep blooming. Comes in lots of colors. A big bang for your buck. You won't be dissapointed!

Good luck, Kenner

Hey, Charlie,

You're most welcome for the list, and I love it when one post leads to more questions which lead to another post....

You're partially right about the Neos. I didn't mention there are 2 growing areas, but the light's similar. In the living room, plants get the same E/SE light but from double sliding glass doors, rather than from the 5'x 5' windows in the bedroom.

Supplemental light is from 2 octopus floor lamps w/ 26W CFLs - DH's kind compromise for this common area.

One of the Neos rebloomed in this location a few weeks ago. The other Neo is tiny.

To add to the complexity, the living room is a few degrees cooler in winter: 58F to mid-60s on cloudy winter days; up to the mid-70s in sun. Summer temps are a couple of degrees cooler than in the bedroom. Bedroom temps were mentioned in the message above: winter, 60-75F; summer, from the low 70s - mid-80s.

In the LR, humidity is low: low 20%-40% in winter and not much higher in summer because of the central AC. The area is completely open, and 3-gallon humidifiers don't make any difference.

The Gastrochilus has just put out 2 spikes in the living room, despite the low humidity. The warmth-tolerant Masde Celtic Frost has rebloomed there twice. All but a couple of the rest in the LR have rebloomed there.

If your T8s aren't supplementing natural light from the windows, you may have challenges growing some of the orchids on that list. However, I don't know the difference between my plain ol' T8s and your HOs.

Before I got the octopus lamps in the living room, even generic, big box Phal leaves stretched waaaay out, trying to find more light, and the spindly spikes had few buds. This was with unobstructed E/SE light that was intensified by the light-colored wooden deck right outside the sliding glass doors. (The deck reflects light in the 5'x 5' windows in the bedroom, too.)

Here are pix of the growing areas. The 2nd bedroom:

{{gwi:184827}}

The 2 brooder light fixtures have 45W CFLs in them. Under the CFL by the bookcase, plants receive enough light from the windows that Phals & Paphs bloom there.

Plants on the lower shelf get a bit of direct sunlight.

The living room:

{{gwi:140833}}

Here's the list again, with living room plants noted. Some are in the LR so they can have "front row" light but don't necessarily need it, I've learned; some are there because they like temps a bit cooler.

1. Baptistonia echinata
2. Brassavola nodosa, var. grandiflora - ordinarily not small, but the leaves are tied so they grow straight up, and the plant takes up little room.
3. Cischweinfia pusilla
4. LR but needs less light than I thought Dendrobium aberrans - lots of show for the small size - long-lasting sprays of fragrant flowers that can bloom from old pseudobulbs
5. LR - same as #4 Dendrobium atroviolaceum - same thing, except no fragrance
6. Dendrobium ceraula (gonzalesii) - same pluses as aberrans, used to be mounted
7. LR - could be in BR? Dendrobium Himezakura 'Sanokku'
8. LR - could be in BR? Dendrobium unicum - huge, fragrant show for the tiny size
9. Dinema polybulbon - used to be mounted
10. Encyclia bracteata - can't be beat - tiny plant, successively blooming, fragrant, long-lasting flowers; used to be mounted
11. LR but could be in BR Gastrochilus japonicus
12. Haraella odorata - has it all; formerly mounted
13. Jumellea comorensis
14. Lepanthes manabina, mounted
15. Leptotes bicolor - formerly mounted
16. LR - could be in BR? Masdevallia Celtic Frost
17. Masdevallia erinacea (horrida) - mounted
18. Masdevallia floribunda
19. LR, supposedly likes it cooler Maxillaria sophronitis
20. LR, supposedly like it cooler Neofinetia falcatas
21. LR, supposedly like it cooler Oncidium Twinkles - on the largish size of small
22. Ornithocephalus bicornis - another big show for a small plant, but not fragrant; used to be mounted
23. Podangis dactyloceras
24. Scaphosepalum anchoriferum aberrant
25. LR, supposedly likes it cooler Sedirea japonica, miniature, white
26. Sl. Marriottiana (flava)
27. Taeniophyllum pygmeas - mounted
28. LR - could be in BR? Tuberolabium kotoense
29. Aerangis biloba - formerly mounted
30. Aerangis fastuosa - formerly mounted

A big caveat - don't go too much by my unmounting mounties. Most switches are recent, and the plants may tank in a couple of months. I'd feel much better if you e-mailed Andy or started another thread here, or both.

Sometimes, Andy offers the same plant mounted or potted. Also, I'm e-mailing him about unmounting the Lepanthes and the Masde erinacea.

All that said, when unmounting, I've soaked plants - each in its own container - for a couple of hours and then cut the fishing line or whatever was holding them on the mounts. If the plant and sphag didn't come off w/ just a bit of nudging, they got soaked some more.

Some people might leave the sphag around the roots, once the plant's off the mount. I couldn't stand it and pulled it away very carefully, running tepid water over the sphag when necessary.

The plant went back in its water while I got the right size pot. If I haven't been sure of the right medium, I've contacted the grower or looked on the Web ahead of time.

In my dry conditions, small plants in plastic pots need about 25% sphag mixed with the bark mix, even if they could be in straight bark mix in a greenhouse. Clay pots dry out way too fast, even w/ straight sphag.

About Frowine's book on miniatures, the section with pictures has been easy for me because he IDs light needs as high, medium, low to medium, low, etc. In another section, does he get all "dappled light" on us?

Does this address questions and comments in your post? It's been fun to write.

Whitecat8

Hey Kenner,

Im not familiar with Tolumniae, but Ill check them out and get back to you. Thanks for the tip!

Hey Whitecap8,

Going through your list, I notice you really like white flowersis that how you got your "handle?"

Your list has a lot of plants I am certain it would be difficult for me to grow because of their high light requirements. I think until I make some more adjustments, I need to stay safely in the 500-2000 fc range (2500 max.) No wonder you need those octopus lamps! What watt cfls do you have in them? Perhaps I should consider supplementing my east window light.

By the way, these are the BlueMax HO T8s I order. Great specs, inexpensive for what you get, and you dont have to buy a case! http://www.fullspectrumsolutions.com/product_104_detailed.htm

The plants I am currently giving serious consideration to purchasing from Andy are:
(Top Contenders)
Acropera (Gongora) galeata
Cischweinfia sheehanae (pusilla)
Gastrochilus somai
Scaphosepalum grande
Stanhopea jenischiana

(Others in the Running)
Angraecum didieri
Haraella odorata
Masdevallia floribunda
Neofinetia falcata (Onamisecai)
Pleurothallis strupifolia
Scaphosepalum anchoriferum (fortuna rojo)
Scaphosepalum swertiifolium ssp. Exiguum
Sedirea (Aerides) japonica
Stanhopea anfracta
Trichosalpinx rotundata

Obviously a couple arent minis at all. I have no idea about Scaphosepali, but if Andy thinks I can grow them, Im definitely gonna give some of these glorious weirdos a try. Ill be sure to email Andy with a description of my setup and get his opinion on my top picks and alternates, and Ill drop your name, saying how highly you recommended him. The alternates really are probably just "next time I order." And maybe Ill be adding Tolumnias at Kenners suggestion and those small oncidiums so many people mention.

RE Frowines book: Go to page 19. There he "explains" what he means by low, medium, and high light levels. But if you have a feel for what he is getting at, then he works for you. I prefer Andys footcandle ranges myself. Then I can measure my light at any spot over the course of the day and get a fairly specific idea about whether a plant might thrive in that spot or not. Of course, no guarantees.

Thanks for the info about demounting plants. Youve been great!

As has everyone who has responded to this thread!

Charlie

Tolumnia's are a great suggestion - cute little plants with even cuter blooms.

Tolumunia velutina {{gwi:187396}}

For size comparison {{gwi:187397}}

As kenner said, they will bloom for months, spikes will branch, moisture in the morning, dry by night. A pretty easy grow.

Brooke

Charlie,

Wishing you the best with your venture. Interesting - I didn't notice about a third on my list have white flowers, which I didn't care for at one time. The Whitecat8 comes from our white cat and the 8 mammals that were in the household at the time - 2 humans, 3 dogs, and 3 cats.

The octopus lamps have 26W CFLs (not the incandescent equivalent) - the largest that will fit in the fixtures without burning out, at least for me. Yeah, you could probably grow orchids w/ higher light needs if you got a couple of those lamps.

Thanks for the info on your T8 HOs.

I looooove the weird orchids, too. Have you checked out the Masde erinacea (horrida) on Andy's site? Extra strange and grows in lower light. Heh heh.

If my Scaphosepalum anchoriferum ever blooms (just got it), I'll scream and holler.

If you give Andy the details of your set up, he can help a lot.

Let us know what you end up with. It's so much fun!!!

WC8

Hey Whitecat8, Brooke, and Kenner,

Whitecat, I had considered the Masde erinacea (horrida) along with other Masdes and Draculae, but (following your lead I might add, hee hee) I steered clear of it because it was a mount that requires 1 or more waterings per day and I'm just a guy who can't make that much of a commitment, LOL! You are SO hooked!!!

I like white flowers, too. Would love to be able to grow Neofinetia and will probably end up getting some sort of Angraecum.

Also, I'm adding Bulbophyllum blumei to my list and maybe some other Bulbos.

So, Brooke & Kenner, what's the real skinny on Tolumnias? Are they really as light-hungry as some claim? I've seen sites that say you can grow them in as little as 1500 fc but most places say they need LOTS of light, but not too direct, lest the leaves burn. I have east windows that can get high levels of morning light, peaking at 2500-3000 fc or better, but it begins to fade off by 11:30 a.m. or so. Think there's a chance I could bloom one?

More later,

Charlie

Hi Charlie, Tolumnia are not all that hard though many people try them and fail. Usual reason over-watering. Haven't tried Tolumnia species. Perhaps they are more difficult. There is a thing called Hybrid Vigor.
Link to my Tolumnia culture notes below.

Charlie my Tolumnia species are very easy. They are mounted and get watered every morning and then ignored until the next morning. I also grew them under lights and they only got watered once a day then too.

I won't grow a mounted plant that needs more than once a day watering. If more than that is needed, it can leave and go somewhere where a futzer can take care of them.

Brooke

Brooke,

When your Tols were under lights, how much light were they getting--were they T12s, T8s, T5s, CFLs? If your lights were T5s, they had lots more light than I can currently provide under lights. One of my eastern windows may be a different story, or perhaps a western window. My light meter should arrive tomorrow and I will do a careful survey of those areas over a few days.

Which Tols do you have? Where's a good source?

C

The problem I see and the reason I asked, Charlie is talking about growing mounted orchids in zone 4 indoors. That is asking a lot of mounted plants. He is not greenhouse growing. Roots exposed to dry air all winter is not something I would recommend. Might be space saving, but I doubt an easy experience for someone who has had success with Paphs and Phals which I assume are growing in pots.
Brooke, is a greenhouse grower in Kentucky.

I grow a few mounties in NY and they require more watering and care than my potted plants. I would not build my collection around mounties indoors.

Jane

Jane, i'm more or less saying the same thing. I know that trying to grow everything is what this newbie (me eons ago) did and what most newbies do.

But most long term growers are specialists. Mr B is a specialist, Brooke is a specialist, I am a specialist in a few Genera. Charles B is specialist and so on.

I have just returned from a large show put on by an Orchid Society with 600 members. What was the main genera benched? Cymbidiums. Hundreds of them. Why because they are the easiest Genera to grow here.

So what are the main genera grown in Northern USA. Say in zones 4, 5 and 6?
That sort of thing might be more instructive that than listing out lists of species, some of which in my opinion verge on the impossible or for those that like a challenge.

Brooke, those Tolumnia might be easy for you, but not so here. In fact i never sell my surplus plants to the general public. In winter. i water them only one a week and then only on days that are sunny. Must trial (if i can find the space) one or two next to my Phals indoors.

Charlie,

I'm e-mailing Andy about unmounting the Masde horrida, or just may do it anyway.

My mounties are in those large vases, so watering can be only once a day. This last week has been hectic, and I "shut down" the orchids, lowering the blinds and turning off the lights.

I covered the mounties' vases with plant saucers and left just a crack for air. Then, they could go 2 days without watering, which made a big difference.

Arthur, hard to name the main genera grown in Z4. My list and Kevin's cover a lot of ground. I'm getting more into Bulbos, Pleuros, etc. and have lots of Dendrobiums plus quite a few Phals. Of course, Kevin has no Phals. :) No Tolumnias for either of us, if Kevin's list is current.

WC8

Charlie they were regular T8's. I don't see a difference between zone 4 and zone 6 since both spaces have to be heated so we humans don't freeze :>)

I got mine from Andy's - one of my first forays into small mounties since I did have to limit the size to get them under the lights. You sure don't have to worry about them drying out by night inside under lights.

I have the velutina, triquetum (?), that's close anyway, another species slipping through my memory cell right now and Tol. Irene Gleason - all blooming now. The problem with blooms under lights is the spikes get very long and you have to get inventive to keep the plant under the light and not have the spike under the lights

I wish I was a specialist in what I grow but I'm not. I have more of some things but am always dabbling in other genera to see if I have a new love.

Anybody want a Gongora and a Stanhopea? I would love to kick them to the curb.

Brooke

This newbie is already hep to the inconvenience of the frequent watering mounts require and now I am only seriously considering one mount that will not require daily dunks. But Whitecat has proposed a possible alternative--plant them in small pots and sphagnum mixes instead. How would a Tolumnia do in such a situation? Are they ALWAYS mounted? Up until now, I have been avoiding them because of my light levels, but ...

Brooke, why don't you like Stanhopeas and Gongoras? Acropera (Gongora) galeata and Stanhopea jenischiana are on my top picks list. They aren't minis, but their cool, and if Andy says I can grow them, I want to get them--unless you dissuade me. LOL

Brooke, i think you are a specialist Phal. grower.
Tolumnia Irene Gleason is a good Tolumnia parent. Not all Tolumnia Hybrids have those long spikes, but having a 2 foot like spike on a 3 inch plant is rather ridiculous.
But that is what happens sometimes with hybrids where there is a reversion to some of the species traits.
We are getting away from the OP's request. My suggestion is Neofinetia falcata (in a small pot). Looks good even out of bloom.
So does anyone know what would be benched at a General Orchid Society meeting in the frozen north.

Charlie,

Z6 (maybe 5) here...

I succesfully grow and flower several Tol. hybrids under 85 watt CFL's. They are potted in 3"-4" clay pots with an @ 50/50 mix of prime agra/hydroton/LECA (clay balls) and charcoal. I water or heavily mist them every morning. I flowered a couple Tol's under my T12's (they had to be within inches, thus issues with spike lengths), but the move to under the 85's really helped with the flowering.

As everyone else has mentioned, they are great little plants that put on a nice show. Mine seem to flower in late spring early summer.

Good luck

Bob

Charlie nix the sphag for the Tolumnia - they hate wet feet. Bob's mix sounds good if you don't want to bother with the mounts.

My rant about the Gongora nigroviolacea (awarded). It has to be in a basket because it blooms from the bottom and sides of the sphag lined basket. It blooms for four days, really strong "fragrance". I guess if you enjoy watching the spikes peek out and the development of the buds, it can entertain you for, maybe, two weeks.

The Gongora (named awarded species) is in a 14" basket, a very crowded 14" basket. It has big heavy pbulbs with rather long leaves, planted originally in sphag but now is a big twisted mass of roots. I have to take the basket down to water it and when wet, it is very heavy to put back up. Very heavy.

The spikes grow over the edge or up through the leaf area and they have to be guided through the massive leaves. The buds all form, open at one time, bloom for 10 days and then all fall off at the same time and make a mess. The blooms are quite small but plentiful on the spike. From a distance, kind of attractive but up close, no.

I would only consider these two species if space was not at a premium. I only have these two so can't speak of the size of the others in the genus. You might think these are great, it just isn't my thing. With 50,000+, there is something for everyone.

Arthur please don't tell my Catts. I am a phal specialist - they are under the impression they rule around here :>)

In this part of the frozen north, we have just about anything showing up at the club meeting for show and tell. I haven't really concentrated on what is brought in but there is always lots of blooming plants to show off. I guess I'll pay more attention this coming winter.

Brooke

Hey, Charlie,

I would feel purely awful if you unmounted a plant, going on my limited experience, and it died. I hope you'll start a new thread here or check with Andy.

Arthur, at our winter OS meetings, we get about anything in bloom. Of course, for folks with greenhouses, there aren't many limits. For people growing indoors, the warm-growing Vandas don't work. My conditions won't accommodate cool growers, indoors or out.

Every year, our OS has a show in conjunction w/ the Saint Paul Winter Carnival. Pix linked.

Other Zone 4-5 folks, what more info should Arthur have?

Whitecat8

Whitecat, it is not information that i should have, it is information about what is "growable and flowerable" under lights in Northern USA.

Depends on where you are, the most "growable" orchids here are Cymbidium Hybrids and not many people grow Phals because they are considered difficult.

Tolumnia are difficult, but only because people have the tropical myth firmly in their minds. Heat and humidity in steaming jungles and so on.

The little beauties were watered Sunday morning and will not be watered again till next Saturday or Sunday and then only if the day promises to be sunny.

They are adapted to drought and note that what Brooke is doing is right because they exist on a bit of dew in dry periods where they grow in nature.

Tropical? The temp before the heater came on was 5C at 06:00 and the air was damp in the glasshouse. Temp is climbing and is now 10C. and will rise to the mid to high 20's as the day progresses.

Charlie, Mount or Tiny pot. Makes no difference. But i prefer tiny pots for convenience. Read the notes on how to grow them in the link and then follow what Brooke says. NO SPAG!! You need to go a lot of tnterpreting in the orchid world.

Why be a specialist? For a start if you have more than one plant you can trial plants in different places at the one time. At the moment i'm trying to flower a couple of Phal. species and it is hard when you only have one plant and two growing zones.

Being a specialist doesn't mean that you do not dabble with temptations that will come your way. But it keeps your eye on the main game which is to grow and flower orchids at their optimum.

(Charlie - Loads of the plants in the Winter Carnival Orchid Show & those named below come in versions that stay small.)

Hi, Arthur,

I was asking others to provide info I hadn't re: plants seen at N. U.S. winter shows. The phrasing must not have been as clear as it was in my head. :)

Or, going from your Cym hybrid comment - under lights in the house in the N. U.S. with cold winters, Phals are probably the easiest for the greatest number of people, with apologies to those who find them difficult or impossible.

However, at shows, you'll see the variety of the Winter Carnival show. No one type orchid seems to dominate - lots of species and hybrid Phals, Phrags, Paphs, Catts, Oncs, & Dens.

Numerous species & hybrid Masdes + related others, Cyms, Maxillarias, Bulbos + related, Miltonias, Miltoniopses, Neos, intergens, & Tolumnias.

Fewer species and hybrid Angs & related, Lycastes, Encyclias, Cycnoches, Catasetae, Brassavolas, Vandas, Gongoras, Laelias, Zygos, Coelogynes, & Stanhopeas.

Always a few Psychopses species, plus less common genera.

Iâm not sure about Lycastes around here, but everything else can be grown under lights in the house.

Is this answering your question?

WC8

I am overwhelmed with all the helpful responses. You are all so great! Right now I am trying to get a more accurate picture of my growing areas and I'm experiencing some light meter problems (see my other posts). I want to better understand just what my light, heat, and, humidity conditions really are and to be able to share that information with suppliers like Andy so that they can best guide me in my purchases. Once I do, I now have a fantastic, varied list to start from, and tons of great advice. I'll keep you posted.

Again, thanks so much!

Charlie