flowering Phrag makes this genus a no-brainer choice

[Bessie]

Hello, slipper people! I recently purchased a Phrag. pearcii that soon after went into spike and has not stopped. I have a number of other genera in my collection (Who doesn't), but none other has been so rewarding. So of course, I just went out and purchased MORE. I currently have a Mexipedium xerophyticum (growth is evident) and Phrag. bessea x pearcii, and am looking for the reverse cross as pearcii as the pod parent coveys the grasslike leaves and small size.
I have been reading posts for a couple weeks already, and am impressed by the breadth of knowledge and the willingness to help. Thank you!

 

[big923cattleya]

A big, fat welcome!!’

 

[socalneps]

Hello, slipper people! I recently purchased a Phrag. pearcii that soon after went into spike and has not stopped. I have a number of other genera in my collection (Who doesn't), but none other has been so rewarding. So of course, I just went out and purchased MORE. I currently have a Mexipedium xerophyticum (growth is evident) and Phrag. bessea x pearcii, and am looking for the reverse cross as pearcii as the pod parent coveys the grasslike leaves and small size.
I have been reading posts for a couple weeks already, and am impressed by the breadth of knowledge and the willingness to help. Thank you!

May I ask how you are growing your Mexipedium? I just purchased an original collection division, and I want to ensure it survives!

 

[Heather]

Welcome!
Here’s my Mexi. Grown them for years in bonsai pots. Drier in the winter, water copiously in the summer per Marilyn LeDoux (who has that original plant…)

 

[Bessie]

May I ask how you are growing your Mexipedium? I just purchased an original collection division, and I want to ensure it survives!

I just added Mexipedium to my collection so I do not have a long history caring for it, but I did search this blog's past threads, and there is an entry by a member who has a fairly long experience blooming it, and gave an extensive description of their culture method, including a picture of their plant in bloom. Their variety was 'Oaxaca.'

 

[Bessie]

I just added Mexipedium to my collection so I do not have a long history caring for it, but I did search this blog's past threads, and there is an entry by a member who has a fairly long experience blooming it, and gave an extensive description of their culture method, including a picture of their plant in bloom. Their variety was 'Oaxaca.'

Yeah, I think that member just responded (Heather from Sacramento!) as she again mentions growing in bonsai pots. Her previously attached image showed the shallow, unglazed type of bonsai pot.

 

[mrhappyrotter]

When I was early in my orchid obsession, pretty much all of my trusted sources and mentors suggested that Phrags weren't really appropriate for beginners. I heard many reasons -- they were supposedly extremely fussy about water quality, needed high humidity, and would be very difficult without a greenhouse to grow them in. At the time, they were also somewhat harder to source (this was in the early/pre-internet days) and mostly way too expensive for a teenager to take the risk.

I'm glad I didn't waste too much time before deciding to give them a try -- amazing how wrong that early advice was.

I know lots of people like to grow more challenging things, and what's easy to grow and bloom for me isn't necessarily going to be easy to grow and bloom for other people. Personally, I like that Phrags grow quickly and mostly without fuss, and that they bloom regularly and reliably. Some even bloom more than once a year or produce so many flowers sequentially on the spike that they can bloom pretty much year round.

The longer I've been in the hobby, the more I am valuing and appreciating low maintenance orchids, and for me, Phrags fit that description better than any other slipper orchid genus. The only major feature that has room for improvement in this genus (my opinion) is that I wish there were more options when it comes to fragrance. Fortunately, there are plenty of other orchids that can fill in the gap and give me some variety in my collection.