Next case, the State of Minnesota vs Kevin Fastner aka The Achin' Elf all rise!

Judge: I understand a plea of not guilty by reason of indifference has been entered by the defense?

Defense: That is correct your honor

Prosecution: [interupting] I suppose Mr Elf spells indifference with a capital R [tossing a large bottle of Roundup (tm) at the defense table]

Judge: [banging gavel several times]Order! There will be order in this court!! That bottle is declared inadmissable as evidence if not entered in the discovery findings!

Defense: I motion for a mistrial your honor

Judge: Shut up you. I'm thinking.[weeps briefly] Mr. Fastner approach the bench.

Defense: This is highly irregular your honor...

Judge; [grinning evilly producing extremely large shears from beneath his robes] Bailif, seize the defendant and bring him to justice!

At this point in most nightmares one wakens in a cold sweat and relief is so sweet you can taste it... in most nightmares.

I agree, those plants that just linger and never flower are the worst. Of course, when you first bought them in a fit of madness, you never thought that you would end up hating them.

How about gone to the orchid heaven in the sky or gone to a better place?

Sometimes those slow lingering deaths are a learning experience, if i ever find another Phal. lindenii i'll give it better (worse) treatment than the last attempt and not grow it with the rest of the casper milktoast Phals.

Anyway, trying to grow everything is part of orchid growing and there are lots of temptations along the way. Have to smile at those newbies dreaming about growing and flowering a Ghost orchid.

Kevin,

Yes, it's a good thing. I get it. Howard, you're a riot. Law & Order fan, by any chance? Arthur, a Phal lindenii died when I was even more of a newbie, and my confidence w/ those is gone.

Kevin, I have 25 orchids to sell at the orchid society later this month. A few more plants are too raggedy to offer to the public - crinkly leaves, but I'm sick of them. Problem is, they're healthy.

Maybe your plant will reincarnate as the orchid at the top of your wish list. In the meantime, you've got room for something healthy that you looooove.

Whitecat8

I shouldn't be commenting in my current state. I'm doing fall clearing, and only the special will survive. In fact I'm proud that [Howard close your eyes] I won! on my most recent live or die experiment! It is almost dead!!! Ah, one less plant to bring back into the orchid room. I feel cleansed and purified. [Howard, you can open your eyes]

I'm throwing out the hanger-on-ers. I'm soooo into phrags lately, and they take up so much room. There is no room to expand into, so the collection must be culled. (kind lurkers, pls check the exchange area, next they go to ebay...)

Kev, don't feel bad, I'm waiting for some to 'pass', I need to remember to stop watering them...

[evil wink]
Carolyn

But Your Honor!! I didn't mean to kill this rotten, little thing. It just had some sort of perverted death wish. I swear!!

Arthur - I agree. Usually I learn from my mistakes, but I'm still temped by things I know I shouldn't mess around with. My other big nemesis right now are all those wonderful cool - cold growers. One would think - Minnesota - oh, those should be easy there. Sure, most of the year is just fine until we reach the summer months. With that said, I guess it's still kind of interesting how some handle the heat just fine and others suffer horribly. That's what probably keeps me experimenting with them.

WC - I know that feeling when a plant is just too icky to put up for trade or sell, but you don't want to kill it outright. If they would just have the dignity to die all by themselves life would be so much easier.
It's a good thing Carolyn is getting rid of some things. My order is in.

Almost forgot to mention this: A while ago, someone sent me a very, very sick Cischweinfia dasyandra. It came with one tiny PB and one tiny new growth. I thought for sure it would be dead shortly. Not so. Slowly, ever so slowly it's coming back.

K

{{gwi:194770}}I have one of those, a Gongora galeatea var alba. I got it in bloom in a pot. After it finished, I mounted it and shortly thereafter the leaves fell off. It has looked like the picture minus the spike for a LONG time, more than a year.

Right now it is teasing me with the spike and a hint of new growth. Maybe it has finally adjusted or it is coming up with one of those "I'm dying so I had better bloom. It's now or never!" kind of spikes.

The only hope that it might be real recovery is that I reduced the light it was getting last month. Perhaps I did the right thing.

Howard you're a hoot.

J

Kevin - What cool/cold growers have made it through our summers? And have you had them outside? There are so many I've passed on because of their temp requirements.

Thanks, WC8

Hahahahaha! You guys are too funny.

I have a whole bunch of those plants that seem to be on an eternal deathbed. Ever since I moved about two years ago half of my collection hasn't adusted vety well. I used to have low light growing conditions and now have high light so I've slowly repolaced certain plants but somne just hang on there and don't die but don't seem to do anything else.

Perhaps I should start "experimenting" too.
Cheers
Rodrigo

It's kind of a relief when that happens. I have an abundance of stubbornness genes, so have been hanging on to two catts that are totally leafless. PBs are shriveled, but there are a couple of good roots that are growing, so I'm letting them take up bench space until they decide to jump one way or the other.

'Course now you have room for one new one, eh? LOL!

Sharon

Been there, done that! Love the 'Law & Order' drama. You guys are wonderful! Richard I had one plant that looked worse then that, only two psbs.. It's time ran out today!

Always room for a new one Sharon!

Happy growing.
Sheila :)

WC - Nothing else has croaked outright and yes, everything is outside. Some of the Masdies have done better than others, same with the Pleuros and believe it or not my one Drac has come through quite well. The Milts have suffered more this year than other years, but will survive. My Restrepia antennifera really seemed to thrive which surprised the heck out of me since this one is listed as a cool to cold plant. I bet it doubled in size this summer and has been in almost constant bloom. One thing that really seemed to help everything was the weekly doses of fungicide, but I think it would be better if I didn't mess around with these plants at all and just concentrated on things that didn't mind the heat and didn't need all the attention.

Want to see a plant that has been malingering under your care for a couple of years suddenly burst into a spurt of good health and yes, even bloom? Give it away to someone else.