Sunday, November 14, 2010

Paphiopedilum Maudii.... So close! Audrey is that you?

Ready for "Little Shop of Horrors II" I think. Audrey is waiting. ALMOST fully open. Lovely! And the first Pahiopedilum that I have grown from a new start to bloom. Awesome!

Dendrobium nobile buds and bloom

I treated this Yamamoto-type Dendrobium nobile to outdoor chill for more than one month. It's pictured in other posts. NOw it's produced a bud at every node. What a treat! Now need to treat it nicely until blooms result.


I think this one is Dendrobium Spring Dream "Apollon". Purchased plant in bloom. It will replace another that responded to cold by developing rot at the top. This variety is reported on the Yamamoto website as warmth tolerant, so may not need the cold treatment.

Sunday, November 07, 2010

Cymbidium

For the past month, I've been hoping to see the new Cymbidiums at Fred Meyer and Trader Joe's. And now, there they are. Last year's Cymbidium grew nicely, and a nice green one would be a perfect addition. On seeing this one, relatively compact and lavish blooms, plus fragrance, I lost my resolve to buy only the green one and added this. Getting it home, I noted tiny grey spots that wash off easily - mildew? or something from the air? Washed them off, and drenched with neem. We'll see if there is something to worry about.

This was the first one I saw, and added it before the others. Didn't buy it, went back to the store the next day then the next. So here it is. A little buyers' remorse here. Beautiful, big, fragrant flowers. I don't really "need" it. If "need" is the right word. Still, they are not a lot of trouble, outside spring through fall, including now. Only when freeze threatens do I need to bring them back inside.

That green one. This isn't the green one I had in mind. It's better. The flowers are more unusual.

The entire plant, flowers included, is much more compact. Better for a windowsill grower. Smaller ones are reported as less dependent on cool weather to bloom. Not sure that's an issue for me. They are always an experiment. There are too many beautiful orchids.

The brown-flowered Cymbidium from last year. She torments me with her slow, gradual unfolding. The two buds are larger than a month ago. I need to wait two weeks between looks, to see change. I discovered it had been knocked over and off its perch. No obvious harm. Outdoor orchids are looking a little borderline as far as mold and threatened rot, so I sprayed with neem. It's still in a sheltered spot, out of rain but on south side of house. With gloomy rainy days, I hesitate to call this full sun.








Golden ginkgo leaves

Beautiful golden leaves. Backyard ginkgo is still green, but others around town are a beautiful yellow color as well. This tree grew nicely this year, after taking a break last year. Not nearly as big as its backyard sibling. I suspect the backyard tree benefits from generous application of doggie "products" that don't happen in front. That may also be why the backyard tree is still green.

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Mystery Orchid

This orchid plant is growing nicely, quadrupled in size from last winter. It was a gift. Previously I speculated that it might be Dendrobium biggibum / Vappodes phaelenopsis, due to flowers that I mistakenly thought were on the source plant. I do think those flowers were Dendrobium phaelenopsis or hybrid thereof, but now have other thoughts about this plant. Until it blooms, if it blooms, it will be a wild guess. With the variability and endless variety of orchids, even when it blooms I may not know. I should just call it "Jovie's orchid".

The small section below the roots, was the original cutting. The rest has developed since that time, including the now-largest growth. Whatever I'm doing, it seems to like it for growth. Whether it will like it for flowers, I don't know. That's why I wanted to identify it.

I did find a similar plant on rv-orchids.com, link here. Even more, this link from "the lush garden within", a blog on wordpress.com. More here. Due to copyright issues, I'm not copying those images, just linking. This does look like "Jovie's Orchid".


Image from wikimedia commons. This is identified as "Oerstedella centropetala"

Another wikimedia image, same species.
Hborchids.com describes these are winter blooming orchids. More information from Yongee.name "warm to intermediate-growing species native to Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama... grows at low elevations in wet montane forests on the Pacific slopes... 1,400 m altitude...wet and dry seasons succeed each other... also really good pic on species-specific.com, stating that these orchids grow in heavy shade. That would be good for an indoor plant. That site states these bloom in Spring.


Old sketch illustrating similar plant, also from wikimedia commons, labeled "Oerstedella centradenia and Oerstedella centropetala / Epidendrum centropetalum".

As with all things ortchid, "We'll see" is the appropriate concept. This may or may not turn out to be the correct ID, but it's interesting to learn about all orchids.




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A few late fall flowers, and kitchen garden produce

Late summer planting of Roma bush beans. These are very good stir-fried with mushrooms, garlic, and peanuts, along with some stir fry noodles. Yum!

A few last roses showing me they're still here. They are mostly such a mess, I'm looking forward to pruning them back this winter. Weeds took over. That is largely the job of kitty cat, who decided that the mulch was the worlds biggest and best litter box, stirring up all of the mulch with weed-seed-laden soil below, and fertilizing as she went along. Still no solution for this challenge.


Nice Dahlia. It's survived many years in that location. I thought it was dead, but there it is.

I keep saying it over and over, but best pepper crop ever!

More schlumbergeras

There is such a thing as having too many Schlumbergeras. Over the years, I've thought "that's a cool looking one, it's small, what's one more" or "Let's see if that will grow from cuttings" and they've added up. Still, when in bloom they're very dramatic and fun.

That salmon colored one again, close to full bloom. Discussed before, it's grown from cuttings.

This white one I separated from a red flowered Schlumbergera. Originally, I bought the red+white combined pot because I wanted the white one. It has fewer 'trunks' because half of them were red. Maybe next Spring I'll cut it back, taking cuttings for a thicker planting, and start it over. Should still get bloom next winter.

This one might have to go. The flowers always ball up and look somewhat mushy. One time I can excuse, but it happens every year. Maybe I can find a home for it. Very dramatic red color, anyway.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

A Spider

Spiders are our friends. I happened on this beautiful web, glistening with morning dew. It's maker lurks in the center, waiting for unsuspecting insects to land on her web.