O
Oddity
Guest
Hey folks, I'm new around Slippertalk and new to the orchid universe. Sorry for the lengthy post ahead of time... I recently got a couple slippers at an orchid show in Michigan at Frederik Meijer Gardens with the tag, "(Makuli - Curtisii) - Maudiae x Maudiae 'Napa Valley' HCC/AOS x Sib" or a Paph. Hsinying Majakun I'm guessing? It was 2 for $20 and I can't say they are ultra healthy looking (to me, as a no0b) but it was pretty affordable and I never seen anything like it and thought it looked awesome.
One was already in flower when I bought it and the other is still a bud. It's been about three weeks since I purchased it and the guy that sold it to me said the bud should flower in a couple weeks... It's been three now. But I understand they can take awhile to push up.
I need advice on how to care for these. The one that's already flowered I'm not too concerned with. It's the one that's in bud form. I read up that it takes awhile for it to bloom and the dreaded "bud blast" nobody wants and I want to avoid that at all costs and am getting worried since the very tip of the bud at the bottom has a very small brown dot... The fella was sitting in my living room all this time until yesterday with pretty bright light (and cold, around 50 or 55 at night and 65-ish during the day) and since its leaves were mottled, I read that it likes less light and warmer temps so I brought it up in my room where it's warmer and dimmer but not overly dark. I have a heater in here but I steer it away from the plant so my room is around 60-70+ degrees. I used one of those frozen TV dinner steamer bowls as a humidity tray (the plant is NOT sitting in water).
The brown dot although small and hard to capture with my phone camera, worries me as well as I've moved the plant to my room... So I'm worried I may be stressing it out too much. All that's been done with this plant is watering with minute amounts of standard fertilizer (once so far) I used that is for other phals in the house (my mother's personal phal orchid collection which is doing very well and are growing spikes all over the place). But we've never owned or cared for lady slippers until now.
My room receives some sunlight but not much but I figured since the leaves on the guy were so pale to me compared to what I've seen on the forum I think it was getting too much light. It's like a bleached out spring green crayon with some medium grass green spots. When I got it at the orchid show, they were already that pale. I didn't know any better so I picked it up anyway.
I have a healthy Schefflera arboricola bonsai to keep the new lady slipper company. Schefflera arboricola are hardy and can do well under low-lighting conditions, and loves high humidity to grow aerial roots (although my room is rather dry it's still doing fine and growing leaves but not too actively growing aerial roots). I recently had to do away with the humidity tray since we were having a gnat problem but I seem to have eradicated them. Haven't seen one in awhile and especially not in my room. I'm sorry for the large crappy pictures, my phone has no zooming capability and poor focusing.
The leaves are so pale...
As you can see it hasn't been repotted yet as I'm afraid of over-stressing it. The original pot its in is extremely tight and small and the roots at the top you can see have been brown... What color should they be? (Also you can't see the brown dot on the bud on this side but the other side.)
Trying to capture the very brown dot at the bottom tip of that bud there...
Any help will be appreciated. I'll be checking back here often. :ninja:
One was already in flower when I bought it and the other is still a bud. It's been about three weeks since I purchased it and the guy that sold it to me said the bud should flower in a couple weeks... It's been three now. But I understand they can take awhile to push up.
I need advice on how to care for these. The one that's already flowered I'm not too concerned with. It's the one that's in bud form. I read up that it takes awhile for it to bloom and the dreaded "bud blast" nobody wants and I want to avoid that at all costs and am getting worried since the very tip of the bud at the bottom has a very small brown dot... The fella was sitting in my living room all this time until yesterday with pretty bright light (and cold, around 50 or 55 at night and 65-ish during the day) and since its leaves were mottled, I read that it likes less light and warmer temps so I brought it up in my room where it's warmer and dimmer but not overly dark. I have a heater in here but I steer it away from the plant so my room is around 60-70+ degrees. I used one of those frozen TV dinner steamer bowls as a humidity tray (the plant is NOT sitting in water).
The brown dot although small and hard to capture with my phone camera, worries me as well as I've moved the plant to my room... So I'm worried I may be stressing it out too much. All that's been done with this plant is watering with minute amounts of standard fertilizer (once so far) I used that is for other phals in the house (my mother's personal phal orchid collection which is doing very well and are growing spikes all over the place). But we've never owned or cared for lady slippers until now.
My room receives some sunlight but not much but I figured since the leaves on the guy were so pale to me compared to what I've seen on the forum I think it was getting too much light. It's like a bleached out spring green crayon with some medium grass green spots. When I got it at the orchid show, they were already that pale. I didn't know any better so I picked it up anyway.
I have a healthy Schefflera arboricola bonsai to keep the new lady slipper company. Schefflera arboricola are hardy and can do well under low-lighting conditions, and loves high humidity to grow aerial roots (although my room is rather dry it's still doing fine and growing leaves but not too actively growing aerial roots). I recently had to do away with the humidity tray since we were having a gnat problem but I seem to have eradicated them. Haven't seen one in awhile and especially not in my room. I'm sorry for the large crappy pictures, my phone has no zooming capability and poor focusing.
The leaves are so pale...
As you can see it hasn't been repotted yet as I'm afraid of over-stressing it. The original pot its in is extremely tight and small and the roots at the top you can see have been brown... What color should they be? (Also you can't see the brown dot on the bud on this side but the other side.)
Trying to capture the very brown dot at the bottom tip of that bud there...
Any help will be appreciated. I'll be checking back here often. :ninja:
When do you guys suggest I repot him? After he blooms and bloom falls off? The plastic black pot its in now is small and doesn't seem to hold water very well. Every time I put water through it it just runs right out again at the bottom. Should I do these drain waterings several times a week? 
