Hab Season Begins! Pectabenaria Ptarmigan

[tnyr5]

13 flowers up from 9 last year. Should be able to get 30 as an adult.

 

[Linus_Cello]

From Sarah H?

 

[tnyr5]

Yeah. All of mine came from either Sarah or Leon G.

 

[KyushuCalanthe]

I GOTTA HAB ONE!

 

[Linus_Cello]

I GOTTA HAB ONE!

L'amour est un oiseau rebelle?

 

[Nelson Wong]

I have 3 habenaria at home but they are growing so slow. What are your culture secrets for growing them?

What media mix do you use? How much light? Temperature and fertilizer?

 

[KyushuCalanthe]

L'amour est un oiseau rebelle?

Che?

 

[Linus_Cello]

My personal collection.

Che?

It's the beginning of Carmen's (opera) Habanera.

 

[Clark Thomas Riley]

I've been growing Habenarioids for many years and have over 40 varieties (both species and hybrids) doing well now. Over half are from Sarah, Leon, and Joel. They enjoy our hot, humid Baltimore summers on a bench that gets full sun in the morning. The potting mix is roughly 1:1:1 ProMix MXHP:Espoma Soil Perfector:Turface. I top-dress them with crushed granite to keep mix from splashing on the stems and scatter some Osmocote Plus on top at the beginning of the season before they sprout. NEVER LET THEM DRY OUT WHEN THEY ARE IN ACTIVE GROWTH. They stay out until danger of frost in the autumn, then moved into the greenhouse only long enough for the foliage to yellow, then into the cool, dry basement for their winter rest.

 

[Nelson Wong]

I've been growing Habenarioids for many years and have over 40 varieties (both species and hybrids) doing well now. Over half are from Sarah, Leon, and Joel. They enjoy our hot, humid Baltimore summers on a bench that gets full sun in the morning. The potting mix is roughly 1:1:1 ProMix MXHP:Espoma Soil Perfector:Turface. I top-dress them with crushed granite to keep mix from splashing on the stems and scatter some Osmocote Plus on top at the beginning of the season before they sprout. NEVER LET THEM DRY OUT WHEN THEY ARE IN ACTIVE GROWTH. They stay out until danger of frost in the autumn, then moved into the greenhouse only long enough for the foliage to yellow, then into the cool, dry basement for their winter rest.
View attachment 48279

Thank you. I live in Indiana and let the plant stay outside. It gets decent morning from the east and then not much light in the afternoon.

Is it okay to leave some water at the bottom of the pot? How much water should they receive? Approximately same amount as paph and phrag? Or even more?

 

[Clark Thomas Riley]

Standing in water could be tricky. Habenaria medusa grows wet in the wild and I have seen some standing in water in cultivation that got HUGE. I don't let any of mine sit in water. They are on a wire mesh bench (see photo) and get watered mostly by our Baltimore rain.

 

[tnyr5]

What Clark said. Don't let them sit in water, unless you happen to be growing Habenaria repens.

 

[Nelson Wong]

Mine is 1 Habenaria Medusa, 1 habenaria dentata and habenaria jiaho.

When I say keep some water, I mean like just around 0.5cm of water at the bottom. Would they be okay. Because they substrate I used are a bit more airy and doesn't retain as much water as your substrate mix

 

[Clark Thomas Riley]

I can only speak for what works for me. Mine don't stand in water, but I keep careful watch that they don't dry out. I've seen medusa grown standing in water, but that's not my style. Sarah H. doesn't grow standing in water and she is a superior grower.

 

[Heather]

Interested in trying more of these one day…just Pecteilis radiata for me so far but I’m itching to try a medusa!