# Paph adductum easy or hard?



## jjkOC (May 11, 2011)

After reading through some old threads, I'm still left wondering if P. adductum is easy to grow but super slow, or it is difficult to keep alive let alone grow to specimen size.

I would like to hear from those who are growing the compact P. adductum, rather than the anitum variety.

Thank you and hope to hear from some one soon!


----------



## carrilloenglish (May 11, 2011)

I have three adductums in my collection. I do not find them to be any harder (or easier) to grow than other multiflorals but they are much slooooooower growing. They possibly are the slowest multifloral paph. Needless to say I have never bloomed one. Two are large seedlings and one is NBS.


----------



## jjkOC (May 11, 2011)

Hi Christian! Thanks for sharing your experience. So it's really slow 
How long do you think it takes to reach blooming size?


----------



## carrilloenglish (May 11, 2011)

Well it all depends on what size you get the plant at. I would say that 12-15 in leaf span is BS for an adductum. I have heard of them blooming on smaller plants but with disappointing results. 

The hardest thing about adductum is finding them for sale in the states. That can even be harder than growing them. 

The rewards of having a blooming adductum make it well worth the wait though.


----------



## Rick (May 12, 2011)

I just got a couple of adductum seedlings from Fox Valley about the beginning of this year. I also got a randsii seedling from Tom.

I potted them up in the sphag/basket system I've been going nuts about since the beginning of this year. I'd say they were 4"ls when I got them and one is now over 6"ls with 2 new leaves. The other is lagging with only 1 new leave and about 5". 

So at this (3 month) growth rate they are keeping up with most of my other multis. It would be great if we could have Tom Kalina or Sam Tsui add their thoughts since they are breeding them.


----------



## fibre (May 12, 2011)

I have three adductum plants in one pot. Only one of them is growing well. This plant flowered 2009 after about 10 years without a bloom. Last year a new fan started growing and I hope it will flower this year or at least in 2012, but the old fan now starts to die. The leavespan is about 10 inch.


----------



## Shiva (May 12, 2011)

I have adductum var. anitum and it is a slow grower. It seems to respond better now with a bit more light than I was giving it.


----------



## SlipperKing (May 12, 2011)

As mention, slow growers but not all clones. I have three that all started off about the same size. One has jumped ahead of the others. Two points to take home; buy multiple plants if you can and buy seed grown F2's or F3's if you can. I found seed grown much easier then collected material.


----------



## Paphman910 (May 12, 2011)

I have adductum var anitum and they are slow growers under my warm conditions. It has put out only 3 leaf in 8 months. Even my Paph stonei grew even faster!

I contacted Tom and Sam two months ago regarding adductum and Sam said he doesn't have any but Tom may have a few left.

Paphman910


----------



## Justin (May 12, 2011)

If you have a source for adductum, you should grab them! They are not often seen for sale.

They are extreeeeeeeeeeemely slow growing. I agree they may be one of the slowest paph species. I also have found that they like pure water, such as R/O.

good luck.


----------



## eOrchids (May 12, 2011)

I have two adductums and have to agree with everyone else, they are extremely slow growing.


----------



## Rick (May 12, 2011)

Paphman910 said:


> I have adductum var anitum and they are slow growers under my warm conditions. It has put out only 3 leaf in 8 months. Even my Paph stonei grew even faster!
> 
> I contacted Tom and Sam two months ago regarding adductum and Sam said he doesn't have any but Tom may have a few left.
> 
> Paphman910



I purchased some seedlings from Sam probably about 3-4 years ago, (lost them after a couple of years) He only had a small number available at the time. Did he say anything about having any adults?


----------



## Rick (May 12, 2011)

fibre said:


> I have three adductum plants in one pot. Only one of them is growing well. This plant flowered 2009 after about 10 years without a bloom. Last year a new fan started growing and I hope it will flower this year or at least in 2012, but the old fan now starts to die. The leavespan is about 10 inch.




Is 10-12 inches a blooming size growth?


----------



## Rick (May 12, 2011)

Paphman910 said:


> I have adductum var anitum and they are slow growers under my warm conditions. It has put out only 3 leaf in 8 months. Even my Paph stonei grew even faster!
> 
> I contacted Tom and Sam two months ago regarding adductum and Sam said he doesn't have any but Tom may have a few left.
> 
> Paphman910



3 new leaves in 8 months? What is the lenght of these leaves? That doesn't sound that slow.???


----------



## Heather (May 12, 2011)

I had one adductum and it was extremely slow. I don't think I had the culture right, frankly. I think Brian has it now…how's it doing Brian?


----------



## Shiva (May 12, 2011)

Paphman910 said:


> I have adductum var anitum and they are slow growers under my warm conditions. It has put out only 3 leaf in 8 months. Even my Paph stonei grew even faster!
> 
> I contacted Tom and Sam two months ago regarding adductum and Sam said he doesn't have any but Tom may have a few left.
> 
> Paphman910



My! That's fast. Mine is growing slower than the Atlantic Ocean.


----------



## likespaphs (May 12, 2011)

Heather said:


> ...I think Brian has it now…how's it doing Brian?




no comment

:sob:


----------



## jjkOC (May 12, 2011)

Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences. I read recently on another forum that one grower has had much success using rockwool in their growing mix, which also included bark and sphagnum. This person also commented that the adductum is prone to bacterial infection, and using blooming-fertilizer (low nitrogen) helped also. Sorry, this is all I could gather as the post was written in french. 

Any comments on these culturing conditions?


----------



## Paphman910 (May 12, 2011)

Rick said:


> 3 new leaves in 8 months? What is the lenght of these leaves? That doesn't sound that slow.???



It was really in poor shape when I got it at an orchid show. It had two leafs that measured 7 inches leafspan but the new leaf was only 2 inch long. It had only 2-3 live roots. The new leaves are about the same size as the new leaf. Not much root growth activity is driving me nuts!

It is growing in a mixture of tree fern, sphagnum moss, crushed coral with pumice as drainage. I plan on putting more moss topdressing to see if new roots will start!

Paphman910


----------



## Paphman910 (May 12, 2011)

Rick said:


> I purchased some seedlings from Sam probably about 3-4 years ago, (lost them after a couple of years) He only had a small number available at the time. Did he say anything about having any adults?



He mentioned only seedlings.

Paphman910


----------



## Rick (May 12, 2011)

jjkOC said:


> Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences. I read recently on another forum that one grower has had much success using rockwool in their growing mix, which also included bark and sphagnum. This person also commented that the adductum is prone to bacterial infection, and using blooming-fertilizer (low nitrogen) helped also. Sorry, this is all I could gather as the post was written in french.
> 
> Any comments on these culturing conditions?



As much as I can remember away from my sources, adduction is not a calcareous cliff dweller, and more moss covered boulder/epyphytic in habit. So I think a bit more adapted to slightly acidic conditions. Medium light and warmer end temps, since I don't remember it found at high elevation. 

In general I'm reducing the exposure of most of my paphs to extra potassium and increasing the amount of magnesium. So just about all my multis are now in the sphagnum moss/baskets. The adductums have some sand, and hydroton balls mixed into the moss. I can't recall but I may have added a pinch of "Cichlid Sand" pH buffering aquarium sand to the mix. I don't use straight RO water any more, but I take a bit of my well water (very hard in quality) and dilute it about 7-10:1 so it has a very soft (hardness about 20-30 mg/L as CaCO3)quality. I am feeding with MSU once a week usual summer rate of 1/2 tsp/gal. For the last month I've been adding a kelp extract.


----------



## ehanes7612 (May 12, 2011)

i received a flask (adductum) from overseas via paphiness two years ago. up until this time i couldnt keep adductums or anitum alive for long (but these were divisions, i think adductum/anitum really abhor being divided). The seedlings from this flask grow like weeds (for multiflorals)...but last year i gave them too much fertilizer/too much light and they yelled at me...but all of them are recovering nicely. they range from 4 in LS to 7 in LS....these in particular want low light (500 FC range) and are really light feeders...i grow in coconut husk with lots of drainage in the bottom


----------



## dodidoki (May 13, 2011)

I have two addutcums, they grow fine, one is almost ready to bloom, but I have two anitums, they are extremely slooooow growers. I wonder because I think this two "species" are only variety of each other.


----------



## fibre (May 13, 2011)

Rick said:


> Is 10-12 inches a blooming size growth?



Yes it is :wink:


----------



## Rick (May 13, 2011)

dodidoki said:


> I have two addutcums, they grow fine, one is almost ready to bloom, but I have two anitums, they are extremely slooooow growers. I wonder because I think this two "species" are only variety of each other.



What's your nutrition regime Dodidoki? You have plants of both types side by side and showing differences that are a bit reversed of the consensus. So I'm wondering if you feed lighter and need to increase for anitum.????


----------



## paphioboy (May 14, 2011)

I do not have anitum or adductum but have 2 seedlings of (anitum x sanderianum), which I got 2 months ago. Both are growing at the same pace as other paphs seedlings I got. My growing media is diatomite + a few strands of coarse sphagnum near the roots. I use osmocote.


----------



## Paul (May 14, 2011)

I have a few adductum from flask and they are growing fast, I find. they are 3 years out of flask and now BS or NBS for 5 of them.


----------

