Some of my Mexipedium are blooming :)

[ProCupidineNata]

Hi! I have to confess to being guilty of the message board sin of only ever having read posts, availing myself if the information here without ever contributing. Since I don't fancy myself expert enough to be in the position to offer much that's useful, I just thought I would share photos of the five Mexipedium clones currently blooming for me. Other pots have spikes, but only these have open flowers. I do have a few Cyps starting to bloom outdoors, but my camera's night mode turned the parvis' lovely golden yellow into something closer to lime.

Mexi and they know it:

 

[Linus_Cello]

Cyps just starting to bloom? Are you in Canada?

 

[ProCupidineNata]

Cyps just starting to bloom? Are you in Canada?

The upstate New Yarktic tundra

 

[TyroneGenade]

Cool.

Care to pollinate one and send me the pod/ seed?

 

[ProCupidineNata]

Cool.

Care to pollinate one and send me the pod/ seed?

I'd actually be happy to do that, but I've never tried. I certainly have enough flowers to give pollenation a shot, if I can find information on how go about it.

 

[mrhappyrotter]

'Tis the season! My big plant is in flower, too.

Once they get some size on them they seem to be fairly easy to grow indoors as long as I don't over water in the winter and keep a constant vigilant eye out for pests and disease. I suppose this is a very tasty species, everything wants a bite.

My biggest challenge with this species is keeping it contained. The rhizomes are quite long and surprisingly brittle when young. It's a delicate balance with my clumsy hands in terms of gently guiding the growths away from the edge of the pots.

 

[PaddyK]

Mine too

 

[ProCupidineNata]

'Tis the season! My big plant is in flower, too.

Once they get some size on them they seem to be fairly easy to grow indoors as long as I don't over water in the winter and keep a constant vigilant eye out for pests and disease. I suppose this is a very tasty species, everything wants a bite.

My biggest challenge with this species is keeping it contained. The rhizomes are quite long and surprisingly brittle when young. It's a delicate balance with my clumsy hands in terms of gently guiding the growths away from the edge of the pots.

Top true... I rarely take divisions intentionally, yet I'm awash in them! I am criminally gravity-challenged, so pots get toppled constantly, which means a *lot* of broken-off growth points. Lucky they root so readily

 

[TyroneGenade]

See https://lab.troymeyers.com/flasking/article.php?number=33 . I have never had to cut away the pouch. I find it can be easily pushed aside to collect and apply pollen.

Anyone know the time for green pod maturation of Mexipedium?

 

[NYEric]

If anyone has hints or tips for growing please share. Mine is doing a lot of nothing. Also. let us see the plants please.

 

[Anca86]

If anyone has hints or tips for growing please share. Mine is doing a lot of nothing. Also. let us see the plants please.

Mine also. Doesn't seem to grow roots or grow more leaves

 

[Carmella.carey]

What do you pot mexis in? Mime are in bark & sand and they don't do as well as I would hope.
Patrick

 

[ProCupidineNata]

If anyone has hints or tips for growing please share. Mine is doing a lot of nothing. Also. let us see the plants please.

I don't know if I'm really qualified to give tips, but I'll gladly share my conditions and a few things I've noticed! Here is a photo of (nearly - I just realized, upon trying today, that I can't get two of the pots on the top shelf out of the stand at the moment, between my being all of 5'4 lol and my shoulders being out of commission!) all my Mexis. I'll take some nicer pictures of them up close after giving them a drink

 

[ProCupidineNata]

What do you pot mexis in? Mime are in bark & sand and they don't do as well as I would hope.
Patrick

I find mine aren't super particular about the mix (I use coarse perlite and bark, sometimes with charcoal, and with either fines or a touch of Promix HP for unestablished plants), as long as it's supplemented with calcium. I've followed Venk Reddy's method, of spreading food-grade calcium supplement powder on top and then watering through with some plants, and the usual approach of adding crushed oyster shells with others, and haven't noticed any difference.

I would definitely try a coarser mix than that, though, and at a minimum top-dress with crushed oyster shell. I've had a plant survive in plain bark, but its roots were not happy, and even that plant got the calcium powder wash through when I potted it up.

Oh, and I fill the bottom 1/3 of my pots with packing peanuts.

 

[ProCupidineNata]

Other than substrate, things I can share about how I grow mine:
The humidity is fairly high, being in a clear grow tent (the one made by vegtrug, so the shelves actually hold weight and the zippers last more than a week), with just the tiny computer fans I use in my carnivorous plant tanks, for air circulation - they really don't seem to mind air that's on the stagnate side, in my experience, as long as water doesn't get on the leaves.

I water roughly three times a week, and feed them weekly (1/8 tsp MSU per gallon), and keep them 8-12" below their lights, which are just some LED tubes I found on eBay a few years ago that have are nice bright white with a few red. I think the seller's name was "orchidhobbyist" or "theorchidhobbyist". When the plants are closer to lights, they do grow more aggressively, I've found, but the leaves go yellow and seem more vulnerable to developing brown spot.

Oh, and I haven't found them to be as happy in very shallow pots, for me, in spite of having seen many, many beautiful pictures of them grown like that. I particularly like aircone pots for smaller plants, but otherwise, a nice tall pot that I can really overdo the styrofoam peanut layer with, is my preference -- ideally clear or translucent to allow for ease of root-ogling! The plant in these picture is in a repurposed clear gelato/yoghurt container I put drainage holes in with a heated screwdriver, being very professional about my hobbies - you can see the roots are enjoying the depth, in spite of the pot's questionable origin story

 

[SEMO-Cypr]

If any of you find that you have some extra divisions that have accidentally came off the mother plant, no matter how small I’d be interested in buying some. I’ve been wanting to try this species. If not, no worries, I’m in Missouri so not too far from Windy Hill Gardens for quick shipping just haven’t put in the order yet.

 

[ProCupidineNata]

If any of you find that you have some extra divisions that have accidentally came off the mother plant, no matter how small I’d be interested in buying some. I’ve been wanting to try this species. If not, no worries, I’m in Missouri so not too far from Windy Hill Gardens for quick shipping just haven’t put in the order yet.

I definitely do - I drop my pots so frequently, it's impossible to keep them un-divided. Are you looking for specific clones?

 

[BrucherT]

Mine too
View attachment 34533

Looks like a lot of pink in your flower.

 

[BrucherT]

If anyone has hints or tips for growing please share. Mine is doing a lot of nothing. Also. let us see the plants please.

Wow I’m always surprised by the plants that give experienced growers fits, that happen to seem “easy” for me. My biggest tip is open mix with some coarse pumice and every 3-4 months, I top-dress with fine crushed oyster shell. The rhizomes are tricky because they tend to wander but I find that I can get them to roof if, as soon as I see actual leaves forming at the tip, I can set a heavy stone onto the rhizome to make the butt of the new growth firmly contact the mix which, just underneath, I’ve made a bit of a divot order hollow that I fill with a finer mix of pumice, fine bark, good sphagnum fines and a sprinkle of crushed oyster. They seem to like the stone sitting on them and tend to shoot more rhizomes off. I keep mine drier than most other orchids in winter. Oh, and they love my Chicago tap water, which I alternate watering with RO/K-lite. One growth became 12 in 3 years.

 

[SEMO-Cypr]

I definitely do - I drop my pots so frequently, it's impossible to keep them un-divided. Are you looking for specific clones?

Not really honestly, with being new to the species I would think the easiest to grow would be the place to start.. . Not sure which clone that would be. I see xerophyticum, and Pixie slippers and fairy slippers on Windy Hill’s website but don’t know much about individual clones. So honestly whatever your willing to sell.