Hi Whitecat8 -- If nothing else, you sure are thorough! With that going for you, these setbacks can't keep you down for long! ;-) Don't take your Aerangis fastuosa outside. There are too many hostile variables outside, especially if it's unprotected. I have a roach problem in my gh, and unless I spray and track down the little monsters where they hide, they seem to particularly enjoy munching on the fresh new leaves of this species. You wouldn't have roaches, but perhaps grasshoppers, a stray sunbeam, etc., could spell the end for your baby. This species doesn't have much in the way of roots, and they tend to be small and fine. It doesn't appear from your photo that it has attached itself to the mount, unless there is some attachment underneath the pad of sphagnum. Andy can grow his "orchids on a stick," but unless you have gh conditions like him (or duplicate those conditions in a terrarium), that type of mount is much too small and thin for an indoor grower. What you need is a 5"x6" cork slab. Don't remove the sphagnum that is already in place. Just snip the fishing line, press the plant and pad into position onto the cork, and pack more sphagnum around it without approaching the lower leaves. Not a lot more sphagnum, but a bit more. If there's a little nook or crevice in the center of the slab, then take advantage of it and nestle the base of the plant into it. Having air only circulate around one side of the mount, as opposed to all sides, will keep it from drying out quickly. Also, the additional sphagnum will help. Sometimes it takes a helping hand from a friend to get fishing line good and secure around a piece of cork. Tie a small loop on one end of the line first, make one loop around the mount, then feed the other end through the small loop. After you snug this up tight, you can wrap as needed easily, and then when you're ready to tie it off, gingerly hold the mount between your knees to free up your other hand. Knot the loose end against the small loop that should be on the back side of the slab. It doesn't take that many wraps of fishing line...usually four or five will do. More than that and you risk compacting the moss too tightly. Is your water heavily mineralized? When I was using municipal water in south Florida (just about the worst water you can imagine), I never had problems, and never was concerned about flushing. Now I'm on well, with low TDS, and that's not even a possibility. Unless you're noticing white buildup, don't fret about this. You may want to consider a large terrarium at some point, although if you've ever seen MrBreeze's pics of his setup, that's a dangerous path to go down! LOL! I think Calvin is doing this on a smaller scale for his angs. Low humidity, all by itself, is not generally a "bad" thing. It's how the increased evaporation rate affects the substrate and exposed roots on mounties, as well as developing buds. Low humidity with high air movement = bad. Low humidity with no/low air movement = probably OK. High humidity with no/low air movement = catastrophic. High humidity with high air movement = great. If you have high air movement and your humidity cycles between 30-50%, that's probably acceptable if you make the change I suggested above. If you allow your plants a seasonal dry rest in the winter, then your air movement wouldn't be as necessary most of the time. It's helpful to dry excess water off of leaves, but if your air is otherwise dry, and you water in the morning, that shouldn't be a problem. Most indoor growers don't do seasonal changes, however, so you probably would continue to run your fans throughout the year. The only reason I can see to run fans day and night is if you're using a terrarium. It certainly wouldn't hurt to run your fan over plants during the night in an open room, but, again, if you water in the morning, it shouldn't be necessary. You may reconsider running your humidifiers. There should be enough treatment in your water to eliminate issues, but if you have a concern about bacteria/mold, then treat it yourself. I don't know the capacity of the units you have, but eight drops (or so) of bleach per gallon should eliminate the potential for any problems with pathogens. Keep in mind that as the humidifier is throwing out mist, you don't want that settling on plants when there isn't air movement. I don't believe the bleach smell will be that noticeable at that concentration, but you'll just have to experiment. Also, if you want to avoid having to clean the filter, de-scale, etc., then just purchase R/O water at one of those dispensers at the grocery store...30 cents per gallon around here. Hope this helps. -Bruce

I sincerely doubt the problem is from the CFL light. It's kind of hard to judge distances, but from what she said: "(see image; the light fixture is above the elephant bush, next to gastro and aimed down and towards the masde)." That's too far away (what, maybe a foot or more?) to cause problems from heat. Plus the light isn't directly above the plant, it's at an angle. Heat is going to travel upwards. Also if heat from the light were the problem, all the leaves should show damage. They don't. If anything, I would say the plant is light starved. It isn't growing and from what I can see, this plant hasn't produced a new leaf in some time. Moving it closer to the window was probably a good idea. For the summer months, mine are in a south window with the blinds adjusted so the plants receive diffused sunlight most of the day. Luckily, if your plant is happier in it's new location, your should see some results rather soon. That's one nice thing about Masdies, they respond quickly to better growing conditions. However, as others have said they aren't the easiest plants to grow. Kevin

njmomma, I was going to mention white "Maman Cochet" until I saw which zone you lived in. If I understand you correctly, you can only buy one plant, which would mean it would need to grow to be c. 20 feet tall so it could grow up, over, and down the other side of the pergola. I've never grown "Deuil de Dr. Reynaud" but its the type of Bourbon I love, rose-pink bordering on cerise, showing a luxerious plushness of bloom. la brea: 3 questions about your rose - how healthy is your "Deuil de Dr. Reynaud"?, must you spray it? -how big does it get? -what type of fragrance does it have? It is said to be floriferous and fragrant, which would get my vote for a pergola. njmomma, I've searched for D. de Dr. R" , it is presently available from roguevalleyroses.com, if you decide on buying one. There is a modern climber that I love because it has a more natural bloom style than a typical modern H.T. and reminds me somewhat of the Old Garden Tea named "Anna Olivier" but it is more cold hardy, it's called "Autumn Sunset" and it re-blooms better than any other modern climber that I've ever seen, in shades of apricot, pink and yellow and buff-tan. Hortico often sells it. Like many climbers, it takes 3 years (sometimes 4) to reach its full size which in your climate zone could be c. 20 feet tall. Luxrosa

Debra, I really like Crazy Ivan, but it i so short. Such a huge flower. Laura, those are some of my favorites this year. Brad, it took several years before Motown blues ever really bloomed well. The blooms looked good, they always seem to look nice, but not a lot of blooms. I moved it, and it does so much better. Kay, i really need to take a picture of Hakuna Matata's branching, but probably should wait til it finishes developing. Maryl, Blackjack Cherry has been here for several years, always the blooms open nicely even early. So far Loud Girls is not doing really well, just 1 fan and not a lot of blooms. I am going to move it when it finishes blooming, or maybe pot it up for a while. The last blooms have looked so much better than the first ones.