Some Paphs in Spike & a New Shoot!

[Happypaphy7]

The sight of spike coming is always exciting, but when it comes with a bonus, it is extra nice!

Brachy x micranthum. The first photo was taken two months ago, and the second one today. The spike has been growing VERY slowly obviously.
I have two of this in the same state, but only posting one as they basically look about the same.

Franz Glanz. Slow but steady grower. This is its second blooming, but the first one blasted on me last year. due to shipping in the cold.

Mem. Ken-Ichi Abe. This is Norito Hasegawa x Fanaticum. bought was a seedling a few years ago. It has been frustratingly slow to grow that I almost tossed it out last year when one leaf developed a few black spots.
Luckily, those black spots never spread further.
This plant is weak with little roots, but it is finally making a sheath and today I found that there is a small new shoot poking above the lower leaves.
Do you see it?? I'm glad it is not stoloniferous. is that a word??

Wössner China Moon. I had this for about two three years. It has been a very good grower and now it is in bud. I can actually see the bud deep inside that sheath. and there is a tiny little new growth at the plant base.
I'm so excited about this one!

Hilo Key Lime. Great grower and bloomer, but won't clump up yet.
Very large flower on a tall spike.

Cam's Cloud. Not my kind of flower, but the plant looked very appealing to me at the Piping Rock Orchids tent at the last Park Side Summer Fest last year. It was about half the size then. So it has been a quite speedy grower.
I'm rather dreaded about the flower. hopefully maybe I might end up with an exception!

Clair de Lune 'Edgard Van Belle' AM/AOS
This plant is an excellent grower. Current two growths in bud, and each has its own new growth!

Emma Decker.
Bought this as a seedling a couple of years ago.
It spiked last year, which was a pleasant surprised. but then the spike just sat there forever doing nothing until it finally dried up and died about 10 months later. It soon developed a new growth which is now in spike. and yes, a new growth again! willing grower and bloomer apparently, but it just has to push it all the way now!

 

[Happypaphy7]

A little bit on culture note.

All these were growing near the south window, and first two plants and Cam's Cloud have been growing under T8 (4 of 4 ft bulbs) at the distance of about 30-40 cm since April this year.

Cam's Cloud has slightly been bleached, while other two have changed in a way that the newer leaves have more silver white part than green.

I had Clair de Lune under the same conditions, but it showed signs that it was too much in just one week, so I had to take it out.

All the plant are in orchiata bark with varying amount of other stuff like perlite, clayballs, and charcoal in some cases.

Some have been in the same pot and mix for several years. Most of them have been in the same pot and mix for 2-3 years.

Hilo Key Lime was repotted two years ago as the original pot had very old mix.
Mem. Ken Ichi Abe & Emme Decker were repotted last year.

I water these about every 3-5 days depening on the pot size, how old they have been in the pot, root mass (the ones where I can see them).

Last year, I fertilized with Jack's Classic liquid concentrate that has all the trace elements but no S according to the label about twice the entire year.
I used Epsom Salt (Magnesium sulfate) for sulfur about twice.

This year, I have been fertilizing more. In the last few months, I fertilized at least twice a month. I even used humic acid stuff too!
I don't see any difference, but I feel like a more responsible grower. I plan on not fertilizing for the next couple of weeks as I have been fertilizing everytime I watered in the last three times or so.

I tend not to water during the winter, but since I have quite a few plants under the light set up, I might want to feed them year around now.

My older apartment had a heater that I could control. I basically had it turned off the entire winter except for very few cold nights.
And plants were very close to the window.

I am a bit worried about winters now because here, the even when I have the heater off, there is some heat, well, actually quite a bit of heat, coming off the wall. Very strange. I will eventually have to figure out something.

 

[NYEric]

All cool, but the Franz Glanz is really good, they are a bear to bloom, good luck.

 

[Migrant13]

Jackpot with all those buds. Thanks for the cutural info too. I noticed you had sphag on the top of a few. Is that just a top dress for holding moisture?

 

[SlipperFan]

You are soon going to have quite a display!

 

[abax]

I'm looking forward to that display, but I love all the
pretty leaves now.

 

[Happypaphy7]

An Update...

Franz Glanz and Emma Decker blasted again.

Clair de Lune turned out to be fake.

Wössner China Moon is slowly developing.

brachy x micranthum (I have two of the same)
One has a high bud. the other one has grown its sheath just a little taller.

Cam's Cloud is making a sheath inside the sheath. WTF??!

Can't believe how slow some of these are!! I thought malipoense was bad.

Fanaticum x Norito Hasegawa is about to open.
It is amazing how micranthum the plant, the inflorescence and the bud look given that the half of it is malipoense!
By the look of the bud and slight marking inside I can see from the outside, it may be freaky when open!

 

[abax]

All your pictured plants look very good and quite an accomplishment in an apartment. I wonder how K-Lite
might do in your conditions. How do get your humidity
up for growing Paphs. and Phrags?

 

[Happypaphy7]

Everyone has to deal with far from ideal humidity level here. lol
I dry my towels on a laundry rack but they become bone dry within an hour.
When it is really dry, then I would occasionally put on damp towel on the rack which takes a few hours to dry completely.
The reading on the humidity divide doesn't change at all though. then again it's a cheap one, so I don't expect it to be that sensitive nor accurate. lol

I always say my plants will do much better in greenhouse setting with higher humidity. Oh well.

 

[adiaphane]

I hate when spikes blast. I had several blast after months and months of waiting, so now I am trying to find immediate gratification by acquiring new parvis in bloom. Fingers crossed we get to see updated flower photos soon.

 

[NYEric]

Sorry to read about the blasting. You should bring your plants to my apartment for a spa treatment once a month!

 

[Happypaphy7]

Both Emma Decker and Franz Glanz blasted last year too. And at exactly same stage. ED blasted while the bud was low. FG blasted as the bud was well on its way to open soon.

One more good news is though Mem. Larry Heuer which blasted in the summer of 2015 is now opening up beautifully!
I'm pretty excited about it!