hmmm. . . a mystery of Biblical proportions. . .

Stan, nope, no show pics. Can I blame poor lighting? My favorite entry was a massive Aglaomorpha coronans mounted on a large lava rock. Last fall I finally had the opportunity to buy a small Aglaomorpha heraclea. Mounted it and kept it inside most of the winter. Took it out this spring and it's just putting out its third new frond. I'd really like to try and cross it with coronans. Ideally the cross would be large and temperature tolerant. But it's not like I know how tolerant heraclea is. That's too bad that you lost your Dendrobiums. Were they potted or mounted? That's neat that you'd like to attach your Platy to your palm! But it's a bit late in the year though. Most Platys are going to start their winter rest. If you attach it to your palm now...then it might not have enough time to firmly secure itself to the palm. Over winter the Platy will loosen...so by the time spring rolls around...you'd have to remount it. The general epiphyte mounting rule is that you want to very firmly secure them at the very beginning of their growing season. I haven't had any problem with fishing line girdling trees. Maybe I only buy the cheap stuff but the only reason I remove it is for aesthetic reasons. Generally, after a year of being exposed to the elements, it starts quitting. Wire, on the other hand, doesn't quit. Plus, with fishing line...the Platy's old shields and moss will quit way before the palm does. You can use the winter to figure out what you'll plant inside your Platy "basket". This is a very important decision. It requires much careful deliberation. You have to list the pros and cons of all the possible candidates. Always ask yourself..."What's the opportunity cost?" My vote is for some excellent epiphytic Ericaceae (3E). Like Agapetes. Especially a 3E that I don't already have. Then we could trade. Remember I uploaded some Platy "basket" photos to the "Orchid On Every Tree" thread? Oops, I missed a couple questions. Maybe the e-mail notification isn't functioning properly. Maybe I'm not functioning properly.

Wow! Spectacular orchid!! I'm really trying to get some of mine to specimen size! Pheli, I bought a Sophronitis alagoensis a while back. It was discovered in October of 2002. I understand that it grows in the warmer temps as well! I haven't bloomed it, but it's doing fine with my warm growers. I might be wrong, but I have been growing my Sophronitis coccinea var aurea with my tropicals. It's been doing really good also. I have new growth and even better, new roots! It's a lousy photo, but it gives you some idea of what it is if you haven't seen it. Here is a link that might be useful: Sophronitis coccinea var aurea 'Tomiyama'

Congratulations, that is a beautiful flower. Great growing!