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Jox

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:3 this is gna have to stop but this one was very hard to resist... 

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Also seeing as bark is so :uzi: furkern pricey ...

I figured I'd repot the olde 'biddies 2017-08-23 17.24.04.jpg in a mix of the bark stuff and coco coir seeing as i bought a smallish block years ago and am still only a quarter way thru it ... 

 

I did the same with the Zygo a couple of weeks ago, and then the arachnis arse-floss ; pertaining toward a slower drying mix [for some respite on the waterload this summer so far] and also pertaining toward minimizing work/effort to results without cost to the plant's welfare or ;) emotional stability ...cuz what with them being orchids :P ya never know eh? 

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Very happy with my first flowers of this mini Laelia x Cattleya hybrid that I've had less than a year. Just wish I had something awesome to cross it with.

 

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Edited by Halcyon Daze
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aww yay thankyou very much kind sir.. I'd forgotten all about this thread

 

.. can't get enough of these greeny/yellowP1010723.JPGand inkedP1010725.JPGP1010724.JPG Phal's :o ..

more than most Phals for some reason they're such a pleasure to be with P1010782.JPG

I can't wait until the orchid growing season kicks off for this beautiful year ahead .. so excited ! :3

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Although this post isn't meant for me , I will add my 2 cents worth as it may help. When I was growing orchids I could send  entire plants to most states by Post except to W.A and Tasmania or the NT, not sure which one of those two states it was now. Seed pods shouldn't be a problem so long as they are packed well to protect them and express posted. probably couriers are a better proposition as Aust. Post takes way too long to deliver now.

 

As to "pollen", I take it that you either want to cross pollinate your orchids or else you are referring to the orchid seeds, In case it is actually pollen you are referring to, in orchids it resides in  the tiny white anther cap at the end of the column which comes out from the center of the flower, I don't know if you will have any success getting the anther caps through the post as they will probably dry out long before you get to receive them or to even use them, I used to cross pollinate within minutes of taking the anther cap off.

 

If you want to grow orchids from seeds that some one has posted to you, it is possible provided a lot of conditions are met and that you have the right equipment. You will need a ripe seed pod that isn't opened yet but is about to, a glove box or flow hood that is set up correctly to sterilize the seed pod, the right orchid flasking media in sealed sterilized jars, generally orchids need a high sugar based flasking media to start life and here lies the problem, one mould/fungus spore or bacteria that has escaped the sterilization procedure and it will overtake and contaminate the flask and you might as well throw that flask away. It is a fine balancing act between sterilization and without killing the orchid spores in the case of an opened seed pod. Incidentally having a seed pod does not guarantee that the seed spores inside are viable anyway as some seeds pod contain sterile spores. Do not waste your money on buying orchid spores on ebay! You would be much better off buying established flasks instead, let them grow and then keep one or two and sell the rest.

 

It is generally a lot of work to grow orchids from seed pods, but if you manage to get a flask growing and surviving the contamination problems then you will have more plants than you will know what to do with. You will have to replate them many times to reduce the numbers in the jars using different plating mixes to obtain the best results. My mother flasks contained thousands of plantlets which had to be replated  many times, the final replates only held about 10-20 orchids per jar. There are other more basic methods to grow from orchid seeds but you will have very low success rates if at all, in the wild, only a couple of spores per million ever make it, where as under lab conditions you could get close to 100%.

 

Growing orchids is very addictive and if you are not careful you will end up having so many that they will take up all your time to maintain them. My advice would be to have only a small collection of the best specimens, and if a new one grabs your attention then sell off one of your not so nice ones to keep it manageable. In other words quality over quantity!

 

Enjoy your hobby but don't let it become a noose around your neck if you know what I mean. Hope this helps.

Edited by Ed.
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On 16/01/2018 at 3:00 AM, ☽Ţ ҉ĥϋηϠ₡яღ☯ॐ€ðяئॐ♡Pϟiℓℴϟℴ said:

Halcyon, can you post / receive pollen and stuffs like with cacties ?

 

I miss Jox .. what an ace thread this is.

 

 

True, looking forward to Jox's "second coming" :)

 

To answer your Q, what Ed. says is all true and I agree with him.

 

I do happen to know that orchid pollen can be stored under certain conditions, but only for a month or two max. It has to be dry but not dessicating, sterile (as sterile as possible) cool and prolly dark too. 

 

So what people do is they carefully place the pollen 'packet' in a tiny little plastic vial, (see below) which is then placed inside a plastic jar and store it in the fridge. Not too warm, and definitely not freezing.

 

So if you go to an orchid show and you are able to get some fresh pollen off some kind soul,  it will store for a few days no problem while you wait for your orchid flowers to open up.

 

 

Then comes the drama of growing the seed. Call up a few orchid nurseries and ask them who does flasking of seed, they will either do it themselves or have the person's phone-number on 'speed dial'. 

 

You wanna get the pods a day or two before they open. That way they can be rinsed in some sterilizing chemical before they are opened. 

Everything with orchids is done sterile, just like fungi or tissue-culture. You will need to send it to the guy expess post.

 

You can tell an orchid pod is about to ripen and split open a couple days beforehand because the 'seams' where the three segments join change colour slightly. usually from green to greenish-yellow. Don't wast time, get it in express that very day, or even go back in time and do it a day sooner. it's not easy to spot it on time. Breeders will often know approximately how many days a particular species will take to ripen. They will be ready for it.

 

Be prepared to pay at least $50 a flask which you may have to pay for in advance.

 

You will have to deflask them yourself, or potentially pay extra and wait longer for a community pot (Compot), a pot full of deflasked baby orchids. alternately you can just buy flask or compots ready to go. just ebay the term compot and you'll have plenty nice crosses to choose from. Practice makes perfect when entering this realm...

 

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Edited by Halcyon Daze
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Thank you so much for the lift up to the realms of such a beautiful world Hal , bless ya fella !

And yay that's exciting to know !.. I still can see his albino graft on the inside of my eyelids :3

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Cheers man it's a cool hobby. Did you know you can combine the orchid and cacti hobbies into one awesome super-hobby? As some orchids actually grow ON cacti. Broms and airplants too! Yeah, NOW you're feeling it LOL. 

 

When you prune a cactus and it forks, wedge an Orchid or airplant in there and Bob's your uncle... SUPER-HOBBY!!! It's a bit like a super-band of the hobby world and you're the lead singer/ guitar-shreader :)

 

Anywaythanks for the blessing, i had text blessings when I woke this morning, and a blessing for bedtime, and just so you know, I got a new job OFFERED to me today, totally out of the blue, working with tissue culture! Thank-you very much dude, I Fkn needed it bad! Life's a Rollercoaster sometimes LOL.

 

Anyway blessings to you too Thunder, blessings of jewells and riches and huge cacti and orchid blooms and heaps of crazy-good awesome stuff! People would be lucky to know you man, and see your mad bio setup. Looks cool you crazy mad psyentist.

Edited by Halcyon Daze
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Aww thank you sweetie and you're very welcome and likewise sir!  ... ,  Well scored on the job and elated that it floats your boat broa!

 

And H'on,  I felt it for years when seeing your cacties with airplants and yearned for it for a while so thanks for the inspiration [and help with vandas too- which are overwintering well] .... that's why I have 2 tillandsias on my werdie whom appear to be riding out the winter in the bedroom window well and awaiting spring before buying airplant feed.... all that after finally being able to afford to dabble with them in aspiration to the realms of your beautilicious combodaceous plantasticalities :3 .. and I can't wait to get the orchs cuddling the cacties too ..

 

 

hey if you're ever over in the UK and have time on your hands fella? maybe one day I'll be able to afford to come see Aus ..

 

I just came home with another 2 new Phal's todayP1010854.JPGand gently placed them with P1010858.JPGthe other nu-nu's :3

 

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It's amazing how pretty orchids attract pretty girls. I don't s'pose your orchids are safe either. My wife can't leave the house without raiding my greenhouse :ana:

 

I can't stay mad tho, I guess I grew them for her anyway.

 

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I like your're blue phals, Horseman, I didn't know they even existed. They aren't slightly radioactive are they? LOL

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Edited by Halcyon Daze
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Some more laelias

 

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Another mini American species ( Tolumnia hybrid)

 

Tolumnia orchid 1 .JPG

 

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Another botanical treasure that flowered for me today. LC hybrid, Fragrance is amazing! :) :) :) 

 

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