Beyond identifying in very general terms which orchids Caro has (a Phalanopsis type, an Oncidium type, et cetera), there is-- practically speaking -- zero chance on obtaining accurate/reliable IDs on her orchids even after they bloom. There are simply FAR too many look alike hybrids out there. Now there are a couple for which identification will be fairly easy -- only because you still have tags for them, Caro. Pot.Burana Beauty 'Burana' (single quotes not double) is a Cattleya type. Pot. = Potinara ... an artificial genus created by hybridization of members within the Laelia subtribe -- Cattleyas are one of the members of that subtribe. (I don't know if in taxonomic circles if "Potinara" is even still considered valid. Recent upheavals in taxonomy has resulted in may plants getting shuffled into different classification categories.) In any event, the flowers of that particular hybrid are yellow with a red "flare" running down the middle of the lip and the two petals. (The outer 3 "petals" are properly termed "sepals." Blame the botanists for that. heh) The only other orchid for which you will be able to get a concrete ID is the Epi.Green Hornet ... although the "Epi" is highly doubtful as far as I know. (I'll bore you with that in a minute. ) Green Hornet, as you suspected, would be your Oncidium type orchid. Now to mess with your head. Epi = Epidendrum. Unfortunately, referring to your Green Hornet, that genus name is definitely wrong -- at least based on current taxonomy. One of the two parents of that hybrid was once upon a time known as Encyclia (or Epidendrum ... the two genera are closely related) cochleata. Later, due to "significant" taxological differences, it was moved to Prostheca and became Prostheca cochleata. However, this was found to simply been a synonym for an earler name -- Anacheilium. By taxonomy rules, an earlier name always takes precedence. So currently, that parent is known as Anacheilium cochleatum. The other parent is also, if I am correct, an Anacheilium. Therefore the correct name for your plant is likely Anacheilium Green Hornet. And even if I am incorrect about the 2nd parent, there is still no way that Epidendrum is correct. Have a headache yet? heh Rodden, your AV would be considered a "standard" AV. Standards -- depending upon genetics and cultural conditions -- can be up to 2ft across.

If pics dont work, please visit this thread: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?p=3497714#post3497714 Ok big blog post. I just finished a huge post over at my aquarium journal thread, please check it out and comment, link in my sig. So when I was in US, I bought Lava rock and pea gravel. Big bags. I also bought a bag of cacti and suc soil. Since all succulent soil on the market suck, it was up to me to make a good mix. Ive used the cacti and succulent soil before and it becomes a piece of foam thats rock hard. Its terrible. I know because I transferred my plants here and there today. Ok so the lava rock was too big. I wanted to make it the size of pea gravel but it was just too much work. The reason you need all material of the same size is because water tends to make a layer over the odd sized stuff. So water would drain around the gravel but pond up over the big lava rock. Atleast thats what I think I read elsewhere. So I spent about 2 hours or so hammering lava rock. Made a mess of the balcony. I coundnt hammer hard enough or else my neighbours would knock at my door. The plastic container is huge but even then I couldnt condense my other hens and chicks. I wanted to reduce the pot/container use but couldnt. I also made the same soil mix for my Sago Palm. I love that plant. Bought it for $1.50 because it was "damaged". The leaves are yellow as you can see. Im assuming it was over watered. Dont worry baby you're in the right hands now :) So it begins [IMG]http://i41.tinypic.com/2w6ylvb.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i42.tinypic.com/2n3ke9.jpg[/IMG] The mess [IMG]http://i44.tinypic.com/2v2axro.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i43.tinypic.com/9qhfk8.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i43.tinypic.com/2qxqh4k.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i41.tinypic.com/2r5yyp5.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i44.tinypic.com/5ww1ex.jpg[/IMG] Final [IMG]http://i41.tinypic.com/1zzgluf.jpg[/IMG] I couldnt set the top layer becuase there are too man small succulents everywhere. So setting it would be hard. Not to mention I ran out of the soil bag. So maybe next week I might get more and top it up. I still have to move around a few soil pots.

I would first think P. bolusii, maybe simulans, but they are usually flatter, having said that my young simulans look like bolusii at the moment. Confused? I tag such plants like this P. bolusii?, meaning I have to check again later. LOL! Faucaria looks like felina ssp tuberculosa or a hybrid of that, but definately some tuberculosa.

Been a long time since this thread has been active, but thought I would add a new section of information. If you have any updates/additional experience with pests or pesticides on your specific succulent species, please contribute! Dealing with Mites on Succulents (Practical and Effective Guide) Mites are horrible tiny creatures that can do a lot of damage. It starts off slow, but as their numbers grow the damage increases very significantly. Note: There is a lot of crazy advice and misinformation about mites on the internet, do NOT believe it all. I have done not only an incredible amount of research but also worked with a PHD in surfactants, PHD in microbiology, and Professor of Entomology to develop my strategy for mite eradication. Step 1: Recognize them and their damage. Thin wisps of webs (depending on mite type). Distorted growth (bubbles, lumps, galls, strange shape). Happens at the fastest growing areas of the plant - center of rosettes, leaf buds, flower buds. Extremely tiny crawling creatures (may or may not be visible). Small pin-sized damage to leaves or unusual drying/dying of new growth. Step 2: If you suspect mites, you will need some tools to find them. 60x loupe, highly recommended. 40x loupe is the minimum. LED light, preferably as part of the loupe (alternatively a very bright working area). 250x microscope or similar, recommended if you have Eriophyid mites (USB microscope by Pluggable brand works well). Clear tape for slide mounting mites if you have a compound microscope. Step 3: Identify the type of mite. This is VERY IMPORTANT because different mites are killed by different pesticides. Red Spider Mites: Little red specks (400 microns) that move at a moderate speed. Can be seen with a sharp eye. With a loupe, look for a reddish fat round body with tiny legs on the sides. If you shine a bright light on them or blow on them gently they will usually scurry off. Tarsonid (Cyclamen / Broad) Mites: Very tiny white blobs (250-300 microns) that move a little slower than red spider mites. They look like little translucent eggs that move. With high magnification you may see their front appendages and legs while moving. Without a 40x loupe, seeing these is fairly hopeless. Eriophyid (Aloe) Mites: Extremely tiny worm-looking creatures (150-200 microns). Their 'tails' can move around when feeding or disturbed. Without a good loupe, you will not see them. At 60x you can see them but only the overall shape. Microscope is required to see the details. You should only find these living on Aloes and Haworthia as they are very host specific. Step 4: Quarantine affected plants and treat immediately. Luckily, most mites like to stick to their host plant. But if you go splashing around water, spraying them near other plants, or let them touch other plants they will spread. You should treat immediately because the longer you wait the worse it gets. If you wait too long, the damage is irreversible. If the plant is cheap and/or only a few are affected you may opt to pitch it in the garbage/burn it. If you are lazy, I would definitely throw the plant away because to eradicate mites it takes quite a bit of effort. Possibly more than any pest listed above except maybe thrips and whiteflies (I never had those but heard nasty things about them). You MAY opt to treat your entire collection. In fact, this is probably a very good idea because if you miss some, you will end up spot-treating your plants in a game of cat-and-mouse for weeks or months. Step 5: Decide what miticides you will use. You WILL need more than one. Consult this list and choose two with different Modes of Actions (MOA): OHP Chemical Class Chart You NEED at least two miticides because if you use the same one, the mites will become resistant and your miticide will become useless. Make SURE the miticides are different MOA. If not, then you are wasting your time and money. Step 5a: Here are some of my recommended miticides. Not all miticides kill all mites!! You need to check the label to know what they work against. MOA Group are included below with the active ingredient. Avid (Abamectin Group 6): Translaminar action (absorbed into the leaves) which lasts for 3 weeks! Highly recommended and extremely effective. Also extremely expensive. Bayer 3-in-1 (Tau-fluvalinate Group 3): Contact action. Can also use Schultz Houseplant and Garden Insecticide 709 which also has Pyrethrin and is cheaper. Note that Imidacloprid does NOT kill mites so Bayer Tree and Shrub is useless. Insecticidal Soap (Potassium Salts of Fatty Acids Group M): Believe it or not... soap can kill mites but really it's not very good. The real use here is to COMBINE the soap with your other miticides to provide better coverage. Any soap works, but the long chains of insecticidal soaps (or something like Lutensol XL-90 or Triton X-100) will minimize leaf tissue damage. You just need 5-10% in solution to help. Floramite (Bifenazate Group UN): Unknown action but kills on contact and lasts for 3 weeks! Highly recommended and also extremely expensive. Does NOT work on Eriophyid mites. ?Sevin? (Carbaryl Group 1A): Have not tested this on succulents, but works against all types of mites. Should kill on contact. Unsure if it causes leaf damage. Ultrasonic cleaner (Group M): Damages eggs and can kill mites. Recommended to use indirect cleaning method (to keep your cleaner safe for other uses) and duration close to 10 minutes with surfactant/soap. This combination is proven to kill 98% of two-spotted mites (study by J. D. Hansen). Adding miticide will improve effectiveness even further. Step 6: Remove ALL affected plant tissue. If simple damage from red spider mites, just remove any dead/badly infested leaves carefully. If there is distorted growth you must cut it ALL out. Use an exacto, scalpel, or razor blade. The distorted growth gives nooks and crannies for the mites to hide in so it has to all go. Your plant will become ugly. Step 7: Wear the proper protective gear and apply. Recommend nitrile gloves, respirator, safety glasses, long clothing. Mix pesticide with 5-10% soap/surfactant. Shake well. Outside, spray thoroughly on all parts of plant, especially nooks and crannies and under leaves. Leave plant in well ventilated or air exhausted area. Do NOT re-enter for at least 16 hours or the recommended re-entry time (check label). Take your gloves off properly and wash your clothes/take a shower. Step 7a: Highly recommended to use ultrasonic cleaner if practical. Applying miticide with surfactant/soap and ultrasonic action is extremely effective. This is THE best method I've tried yet. Ultrasonic cleaners are pretty cheap on Amazon or found locally. Plus you can keep your jewelry sparkling clean! Hopefully your succulent is small and in gritty mix. Remove all soil. Small because you want to put in a glass (jar or beaker) which will sit in the ultrasonic cleaner. Fill the glass with well mixed miticide + surfactant (so you use less) and outside the glass with water to the fill line. If your miticide solution is warm, that is better because you will get better cavitation (should not be hot though). Cleaning time close to 10 minutes is recommended. Simply repot in gritty with minimal disruption to the roots and follow re-entry protocol for that area. If you are tidy, it will be easier to re-inspect plants because any debris, dust, egg casings, etc. will be removed due to ultrasonic cavitation. I did not observe any tissue damage after multiple ultrasonic treatments. Step 8: Post-spray care. Keep your plants out of light to prevent phytotoxicity. Do not water your plants. Mites feed easier on fresh growth so slowing plant growth down will slow the mites down. Week 1: Examine very carefully to verify your treatment was effective. Week 3: Re-apply the SAME miticide as the first. Week 4: Re-inspect. Hopefully you found nothing. Week 5: Apply your SECOND miticide. Week 6: Re-inspect. Hopefully you found nothing or else you may need to improve your treatment method. Week 7: Re-apply your SECOND miticide. Week 8: Re-inspect. No mites! Step 8a: If you found mites after 8 weeks. Check if you removed all distorted growth. If not, more surgery is required. Check you used the right miticide. Reapply your first miticide IF you have not exceeded the # of allowable treatments per year for that miticide. If you have exceeded the # of treatments, you will need a THIRD miticide with a different MOA to add to your rotation. Overall summary notes: You CAN eradicate red spider, Tarsonemid, and Eriophyid mites. It WILL require a lot of diligent work, you cannot be lazy. Good miticides are very expensive. You can use cheaper ones too. If you have an expensive or extensive collection, I do not recommend trying weird/dangerous homebrew or DIY methods for dealing with mites. As you can see above, you need a well planned and structured method to eradicate them fully. It is very helpful to understand mite biology and life cycle to get in the mindset when treating for them. This applies to any pest, but mites can be particularly challenging to deal with. I really don't know if anybody will read or use this guide or information, but at least I thought I'd try to share my findings and experience! Took far too many words to explain it, but when you do it in person the process is actually very quick.