mrhappyrotter
Grand Chupacabra
This little SH*T finally bloomed for me.
I have grown this plant for at least 8 years, and it has never bloomed for me in all that time. I've tried all kinds of different approaches over the years such as warm and consistent moisture year round, full sunlight, big day/night temperature drops, super dry winter rests with cool temps, heavy seasonal feeding, etc . It grows well no matter what I throw at it, but it simply refused to bloom.
Last year I decided to keep it out in the greenhouse over winter, temps sometimes drop into the low to mid 30s F (just above freezing) with limited, light watering. It did not bloom. This year, I did exactly the same because I was resigned to never seeing it in flower and didn't want to bother trying anything else (plus I was sort of out of ideas). There's really nothing I did differently this year compared to last. Other than I put the plant on my list of orchids to get rid of this year. So, I guess that's the secret to blooming it, threats.
It was only a fluke that I noticed this one single bloom on the plant. Last week, I took the plant down from the hanger to look at it when I spritzed it during a brief warm weather day and I didn't notice any spikes or buds. I know this did not develop since last Friday or Saturday, so it must've been there and I just missed it.
As for the good qualities, it's quite tiny growing compared to my other Brassavolas and Brassavola dominant hybrids. The foliage takes on beautiful coloration when grown in high light. The reds, pinks, orangey tones along with freckles make it a beautiful thing to look at even when not in bloom. And as I've mentioned, I've grown it in a wide variety of different conditions over the years, yet it always seems to thrive no matter what.
I'm still leaning towards getting rid of it this year, but now I do need to recalculate that. For now I'm leaving it on the gotta go list.
I'm going to try to remember to give it a sniff tonight and come back to report on it. This should be fragrant and I'm guessing it'll be along the lines of the vanilla-clove-floral scent of B. nodosa and many other Brassavola species, but who knows? Not sure what to expect in terms of strength, and even if it's not fragrant tonight, I'll continue to monitor it since it may have just opened.
I have grown this plant for at least 8 years, and it has never bloomed for me in all that time. I've tried all kinds of different approaches over the years such as warm and consistent moisture year round, full sunlight, big day/night temperature drops, super dry winter rests with cool temps, heavy seasonal feeding, etc . It grows well no matter what I throw at it, but it simply refused to bloom.
Last year I decided to keep it out in the greenhouse over winter, temps sometimes drop into the low to mid 30s F (just above freezing) with limited, light watering. It did not bloom. This year, I did exactly the same because I was resigned to never seeing it in flower and didn't want to bother trying anything else (plus I was sort of out of ideas). There's really nothing I did differently this year compared to last. Other than I put the plant on my list of orchids to get rid of this year. So, I guess that's the secret to blooming it, threats.
It was only a fluke that I noticed this one single bloom on the plant. Last week, I took the plant down from the hanger to look at it when I spritzed it during a brief warm weather day and I didn't notice any spikes or buds. I know this did not develop since last Friday or Saturday, so it must've been there and I just missed it.
As for the good qualities, it's quite tiny growing compared to my other Brassavolas and Brassavola dominant hybrids. The foliage takes on beautiful coloration when grown in high light. The reds, pinks, orangey tones along with freckles make it a beautiful thing to look at even when not in bloom. And as I've mentioned, I've grown it in a wide variety of different conditions over the years, yet it always seems to thrive no matter what.
I'm still leaning towards getting rid of it this year, but now I do need to recalculate that. For now I'm leaving it on the gotta go list.
I'm going to try to remember to give it a sniff tonight and come back to report on it. This should be fragrant and I'm guessing it'll be along the lines of the vanilla-clove-floral scent of B. nodosa and many other Brassavola species, but who knows? Not sure what to expect in terms of strength, and even if it's not fragrant tonight, I'll continue to monitor it since it may have just opened.
