# fairrieanum culture???



## Bolero (Jul 6, 2010)

Hi guys,

Do any of you have any tips of fairrie culture for me? I have deflasked some (none have died) a few months ago but they just don't appear to be happy.

They are growing cool outside alongside happy venustum, micranthum and hangianum but for some reason I've always had trouble with these plants.

What do you think? Any thoughts at all on their cultural requirements would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Darren


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## goldenrose (Jul 6, 2010)

my first thought is it could be too cool for babies, the intermediate temp range?


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## TADD (Jul 6, 2010)

Don't ask me, still my favorite, but I keep killing many...


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## Rick (Jul 6, 2010)

Mine are probably in spots a bit warmer than "cool", but for the 3 other species you mentioned I would think just fine.

I've usually grown them around a lot of phrags so I could push the light up a bit, while staying "coolish".

This species (for me) adds growth like crazy, and I may have gotten behind the nutrition 8ball a couple of times. Subsequently these seem to have responded very well recently to a couple of shots of magnesium (epsom salts) after adding a dash of bone meal to the potting mix.


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## Bolero (Jul 7, 2010)

They are also growing next to Phrags. You may laugh but two Phrags I own are growing well down to 35F (2C). 

I will bring them inside the house this weekend where it's a bit warmer. But I will put them outside again when they are bigger. People here grow them cold but maybe they wait until they are big enough to deal with it. In their natural environment I believe they also grow coldish........;-)

Thanks guys, I guess I should have done that in the beginning. I will also give them some epsom salts.

Darren


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## goldenrose (Jul 7, 2010)

Low 40's is the info I have. As hard as we try, can we duplicate the natural environment or is it the plants' ability to adapt to the change? What % of fairries make it thru that stage in the wild? Aren't we looking for the 'ideal' temp/conditions for the most to survive?


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## Eric Muehlbauer (Jul 7, 2010)

Pretty much the same culture as insigne...with the difference being that insigne is hardy as a rock and fairreanum dies when you say "boo".


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## Yoyo_Jo (Jul 7, 2010)

Hmmm, I think I will move my fairrieanum down to the basement underlights. It's much cooler down there. I didn't realize they were fussy about temperature.


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## Bolero (Jul 10, 2010)

I have brought them inside for 8 weeks until spring starts in the southern hemisphere. Hopefully they do ok until the next winter.

Darren


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## hardy (Sep 13, 2010)

Hi Darren, 

How are your plants doing? I bought some young plants few years ago, and 
they grow and bloom well under warm conditions in Indonesia. They began to 
flower at 3 years from flask, after forming nice clumps of about four growths.

Here are some recent photos:

1,2,3,4 are sibling albino form from the same cross, 1 is the size I bought it 
two years ago. I grew it for a year in sphagnum, which did not suit it well at 
all. The rest were grown in birdnest fern right away and did so much better. 
No 5 is the colored form. 







A newly opened flower and an aged one. The two clones look very similar, 
the main difference is the amount of ruffling on the edges.











The colored form:





They seem to love the warm temps, around 28/22 centigrade day/night with 
occasional dips below twenty degrees during the night. But these plants 
were bred in Taiwan, so maybe heat-tolerant lines were used. Lighting is 
quite low with very high humidity and excellent air movement.

Hardy


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## paphioboy (Sep 13, 2010)

That is extremely interesting... I never knew fairrieanum could be grown in tropical conditions. maybe paphs from these group are more temperature-tolerant than we expect... I have heard of Singapore growers successfully growing and blooming spicerianum too...


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## paphioboy (Sep 13, 2010)

wow, hardy, it takes you only 3 years to bloom fairrieanum from flask..? What have you been feeding them with..? I have some (cochlo x multiflora)seedlings that I have had for over 5 years and not showing a single bloom yet...


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## JeanLux (Sep 14, 2010)

Very nice ones Hardy, and great growing; I esp. like the colored form!!! Jean


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## hardy (Sep 14, 2010)

Thank you, Jean.

Paphioboy,
When I bought them they were already a year from flask. They're watered with 
1/10 strength Hyponex everyday. Yes, a friend in Singapore flowered a 
charlesworthii too. It's amazing how adaptable some of these orchids are 
Hardy


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## gotsomerice (Sep 14, 2010)

I say leave them outside and increase the humidity! (Notice I said increase humidity not watering.) My plants are grown outside and winter can go down to lows 40F. They grow like weeds for me. Most old growths have 2-3 new growths each season. Check out my other post for the images of my fairrieanums.


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## Damas (Nov 13, 2010)

Hi Friends,

I found my fairrie very easy in cultivation. I bought it in july 2008. This is what he looked like, back to this time (sold as a seedling one year from blooming, leaf span is about 10cm):






And this what he looks like today, with it's four pods and two buds. This plant is flowering all year long and produces multiple growth :





It's cultivated under light, as all my other paphs. Temperatures are 20° to 25° at night, depending on the season, and 25° to 30° day time.
I water him more often that some other species, because he is drying faster. I think he likes humidity more than others. It's a very easy grower for me. One of the easiest in fact.


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## Bolero (Nov 13, 2010)

My leaves are a completely different colour whether I grow them dark or light. They also have long stems which indicates they grew in low light before deflasking. I am going to repot them soon and grow them deeper, I will also give them a bit more heat whilst they are seedlings and then grow them cooler when they are closer to flowering.


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## JeanLux (Nov 13, 2010)

Damas said:


> Hi Friends,
> 
> I found my fairrie very easy in cultivation. I bought it in july 2008. This is what he looked like, back to this time (sold as a seedling one year from blooming, leaf span is about 10cm):
> ....
> I water him more often that some other species, because he is drying faster. I think he likes humidity more than others. It's a very easy grower for me. One of the easiest in fact.



Wow!!!! This is a great growing within 2 years time :drool: !!! Jean

(I am happy that my 1st fairrie is about to open its bloom on a 2 growths plant + 1 small new growth)


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## Kavanaru (Nov 13, 2010)

as I already commented in Flickr... WOW!! Damas, that's a plant... I should take this picture and place it next to my fairrie... it keeps the same pattern all the time: One growth that blooms and die, leaving a new one growing... no matter whether it was grown on a windowsill (west side) and a bit cooler, or under lights and warmer, or now in the greenhouse (well, this still needs to have a bit more time to show whether the growth would be affected)...


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## pdxpaphguy (Nov 13, 2010)

*fair*

Darren, I'm growing mine here in Oregon in pretty cool conditions. I have a group of OZ flasklings doing well and my BS size plant from Sam is in bud with a couple new growths. I grow alongside my venustum, delenatii etc. Night time temps down to the low 60s and upper 50s, day time temps in winter to upper 60s and 90s during the summer. From this post it seems like they can handle a wide range of temps. Oregon is relatively humid most of the time.


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## smartie2000 (Nov 13, 2010)

impressive Damas, that you got your plant that big in only two years. That is exceptional, it's hard to believe that you got it in 2008


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