Second Orchid Trip Report: Silva Orchids

15 years ago

Yesterday I went to Silva Orchids which is in Neptune, NJ. I wasn't sure what to expect as the Silva Orchids website does not have many photos. They have 3 large greenhouses on private residential property. Two guys run the business. My husband and I went into the greenhouses and looked around. All 3 greenhouses were packed. The first green house had cats and oncidiums. 95% not in bloom. Many didn't have prices on them.... however the ones that did were priced $35+ range. (sorry, I don't know these orchids well enough to tell you what kind I saw)

Second and third greenhouses had mostly phals. 95% not in bloom. They had white phals, pink phals, some very pretty fuscia phals (which the guy tried to sell to me as "red"- ha!) Baldan's Kaleidoscope, a yellow phal, and a few others. Again, most didn't have prices on them. I wanted a Baldan's Kaleidoscope and asked for a price of one in bloom. One of the owners told me "oh, you don't want that- it's already in bloom and i don't have any ones in bud." so i told him that was fine, how much was the one in bloom and he said $35. It was beautiful, but I didn't want to spend the $35.

I also saw a few dendrobium and vandas (not in bloom)

He didn't seem too keen on selling anything to me. He said that he sells to the NYC market and that's where he primarily makes most of his money (so I guess i was a small fish?)

If you are going down the Jersey Shore, I recommend stopping off. Even if you don't buy anything, you'll have fun looking. Probably it's best to go in the spring when more is in bloom.

In 2 weeks I'll be going to Waldor Orchids (VERY EXCITED!) and will report on that.

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carrilloenglish

15 years ago

I live about forty minutes away from Silva's and I have to assert that they are a great orchid nursery. While I am friendly with the owners, not necessarily friends, I state an objective opinion that they have high quality plants and I have never been dissapointed when going there. While their prices can sometimes be a tad bit high, I believe you get what you pay for. PERIOD!

They do carry a lot of species, specifically in the cattleya alliance. In fact, they are known for thier catt species and breeding program. They also carry species of other orchid families. I have bought angrec., aerangis, catt, paph, masdevallia, and phal species from their nursery.

Last year they won the highly coveted Merrit Hunnington award for their St. Swithin 'Neptune' FCC/AOS. If memory serves me right, a division of this plant sold for over 10 thousand dollars. Yes, 10 thousand dollars (I think it was 12 or 15 grand).

Some of their plants are bought from other nurseries in Hawaii and Taiwan (which is common for a lot of nurseries). And this adds to their sales diversity.

Yes, I assume 95% of their orchids are not in bloom right now -- a majority of orchids are not in flowering season now. I also know Silva's sells a lot of large seedlings that are not necessarily flowering size yet (specifically in the paph area).

It sounds like you are looking for phals; most phals are going out of bloom right now. Their season (except if it is a summering phal) is the winter/spring.

Dependng on the size, quality and number of blooms on the Baldan's Keliedscope, $35 dollars is a good price, probably a very good price. As per the fuscia phal -- "fuscia" phals can be red, it's all about personal perception. Red phal breeding is still new. I don't think there is a pure red phal yet either eventhough breeders are working towards this goal --depending on the shade of fuscia it can be considered a red phal.

You are not going to find Home Depot prices at an orchid nursery. You will also not find the quality of an orchid nursery at Home Depot. As you become more and more involved in orchid growing you will soon learn that you will get what you pay for and what orchid quality is worth to you.

The guys who run the nursery, Tony and Joe are also very nice people. They know their business. They are honest and truthful.

As an AOS student judge and a knowledgeable reference for Silva's, I really recommend the trip for anyone. They sell a lot of quality plants.

If you are in the area, don't take my word for it -- find out for yourself.

Christian Carrillo,
spotswood, NJ

Comments (14)

tomp_in_pa
15 years ago
Believe it or not we had a family beach house right in Ocean Grove in Neptune Twp. for many years. I never knew this place existed until after we sold the beach house.

Guess I did not miss much though as I am a species snaob :-)
counselor4444
Original Author
15 years ago
They may have had species... I don't know. I'm still learning so I can't identify everything yet.
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So, I'm guessing that you like yellow and fuschia... I agree with Debbie that they're both very nice and that #1 looks a lot like Baldan's Kaleidoscope. You can't know for sure, but odds are. I also can't idenfity the second one, but I can tell you that its culture can be summed up as humid, intermediate-cool, humid, good light and did I mention humid? I may be overstating it a tad, but you should know that I grow these with my Masdevallias, which is the only place where I've been able to keep them happy. I'm enclosing a link to the COC culture sheet on Miltoniopsis. Hope this helps. Julie Here is a link that might be useful: COC - Miltoniopsis
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Thank you Ben I haven't repotted my dendrobrium since I purchased it, I have had 2 lots of flowers on it since I bought it so it might be time to repot, there are new shoots coming up for a new stem so will start fertilising. I wasn't sure about fertilising last year as I did but the roots turned a brown colour that could also be down to poor media. It did grow new white roots, I stopped fertilising just in case. When would the best time be to repot it? It is in great bloom at the moment with more buds about to open and a new stem growing. Your flowers are a beautiful colour. I purchased a pink one last year the flowers died off end of last year so no blooms this year but plenty of growing just now. I might repot that just now as I don't know how long it's been in that pot it came in. Many thanks for your advice.
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the_analyst
15 years ago
Christian, wow. You sound like you are a person to go to with orchid questions.

Counselor, I still highly recommend you look into going to Parkside. It really isn't that far away. Parkside has a good amount of Phals, as they have 5 greenhouses. I bought at catt at Parkside for $35, and I find it to be one of the most impressive orchid in my collection.

Sarah
counselor4444
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks for all the info! I'm not at a stage yet with my orchid growing where I can justify spending $35 on a plant (I don't know how good I am yet..) Their plants certainly seemed to be in good condition.

And yes, I know it's not phal blooming season. boo!
carrilloenglish
15 years ago
We all started at one point too.

Becareful though, once the orchid bug bites you, there is no turning back....

Waldor's is wonderful too. You'll love it.

Also take a trip to Parkside in PA. That's another amazing operation. They have 6 greenhouses, all open to the public.

Are you involved in an orchid society?

Christian
the_analyst
15 years ago
Counselor, I used to have the same thoughts. $35, are you out of your mind!? But, after some time I realized that if you spend a little more from a good supplier, you often get a plant in better condition. And my philosophy after I spend $35 is, "Okay, I just spend $35 on a plant. I can't kill it!!!" Plus, orchid suppliers are so meticulous about taking care of them, but home many dried up wilting orchids do you see selling for $25 (only 10 bucks less) at Home Depot or Lowes? Do what feels right for you.

Sarah
sujewel
15 years ago
I'm DYING to go to Parkside - next year for the orchid show.
the_analyst
15 years ago
Sujewel, it is a must! Even without the orchidfest, it is still great! Plus when you other times of the year, it is less busy, which means you will probably have free roam of the greenhouses without having to squeeze by people down the narrow walkways.

Btw, I meant 6 greenhouses above, not 5.

Sarah
counselor4444
Original Author
15 years ago
Yes, I'm very excited to go to Waldor in less then 2 weeks. AT the very least, they have some supplies that I want.

Carrilloenglish: No, I'm unfortunately not a member of an orchid society... I just can't get to the meetings after work. Nothing is local enough for me and I get home late from work :-(

I'm sure I'll get to Parkside one day too... just not too sure I'll get there this year.
orchid126
15 years ago
Silva orchids may not have a red phal, but they have the most beautiful Christmas red Potinara Redheart "Neptune" that I ever saw. Carter and Holmes wanted $75 for their red one, but Silva only wanted $35. My plant is fully grown now and I get six or nine gorgeous red flowers every year.

Parkside is well worth the effort to see. The six greenhouses are all neat and clean, and the plants are meticulously well groomed. The staff is very patient and helpful. They have far more plants than they list on their website.

Thirty-five dollars may seem like a lot of money, but a healthy plant doesn't require money spent on insecticides and weeks of trying to eradicate a seige of insects or weeks of trying to coax roots on a plant that was overwatered, or months of patiently waiting for a flower spike.
wiscnick
15 years ago
I don't like to spend too much on ny orchids either, I like to buy them small and watch them grow...
I had been hinting--not so subtley--thet I wanted a Baldan's Kaleidescope 'Golden Treasure'
For our anniversary, DH brought one home from the local orchid shop with two spikes and 46 flowers on it...I suspect it was quite expensive...That was end of april, and it still has that many flowers on it...
nicole
whitecat8
15 years ago
Counselor,

One place to check out is Big Leaf Orchids. Peter Lin has high-quality Phals - and only Phals. There's a picture of each plant for sale, and prices range from $15 up, not counting seedlings, with loads of Phals under $35.

One note - in the descriptions for each Phal, the leafspan is the current span, not the size at maturity, if space is a concern for you.

Hope this is helpful. Keep the grower stories coming.

Whitecat8

Here is a link that might be useful: Big Leaf Orchids
Deborah Bodei
8 years ago
Have you been back to Silva's? I am curious to know if you have learned more, gotten bitten by the Orchid bug and if you realized they are the best place in town for the serious grower.

Second Orchid Trip Report: Silva Orchids

carrilloenglish

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