V
Vrug
Guest
I guess it is time for me to step out from the shadows. I learned of this board through a message in OSF and thought I'd check it out. I've been here for a few weeks already "lurking". Thought it was time to sign up and begin participating. Thank you for being here with a refreshing community.
Orchids hit my radar when I was 11. My dad gave me two orchids (a noid Phal and a Paph Rosy Dawn) for a b-day present. I joined the NW Orchid Society in the early 70's, met many wonderful people, and began absorbing knowledge .. and plants. My original two orchids were dead inside of 6 months but by then I was hooked. And my collection has grown and changed ever since.
Today, I have a mixed bag collection -- a bunch of masdevallias, some phals, a few bulbos, two sobralias, mini and compact catts, lots of species, a good number of paphs, and loads of (my favorite) phrags -- 260 plants in all. They are sharing my apartment and growing in a north-facing window wall. When I first moved in here, I supplemented with a 125-watt florescent bulb. Then I discovered T5 florescents. Oh man, what a difference! There are now 3 four-foot fixtures, two are 4-bulb and one is an 8-bulb. In bloom now is Phrag. caudatum x Will Chantry, Phrag. Praying Mantis, Phrag. Sunset Glow 4N, a bulbo hybrid, and some catts.
All of the above plants are also grown semi-hydroponically. I have always been into experimenting with different media (wine corks, aquarium gravel, crushed clay pots, etc) and tried S/H on a few plants after stumbling upon Ray's site. The orchids grew like weeds for me and I gradually shifted the whole collection to S/H with great results.
~ Joff
Orchids hit my radar when I was 11. My dad gave me two orchids (a noid Phal and a Paph Rosy Dawn) for a b-day present. I joined the NW Orchid Society in the early 70's, met many wonderful people, and began absorbing knowledge .. and plants. My original two orchids were dead inside of 6 months but by then I was hooked. And my collection has grown and changed ever since.
Today, I have a mixed bag collection -- a bunch of masdevallias, some phals, a few bulbos, two sobralias, mini and compact catts, lots of species, a good number of paphs, and loads of (my favorite) phrags -- 260 plants in all. They are sharing my apartment and growing in a north-facing window wall. When I first moved in here, I supplemented with a 125-watt florescent bulb. Then I discovered T5 florescents. Oh man, what a difference! There are now 3 four-foot fixtures, two are 4-bulb and one is an 8-bulb. In bloom now is Phrag. caudatum x Will Chantry, Phrag. Praying Mantis, Phrag. Sunset Glow 4N, a bulbo hybrid, and some catts.
All of the above plants are also grown semi-hydroponically. I have always been into experimenting with different media (wine corks, aquarium gravel, crushed clay pots, etc) and tried S/H on a few plants after stumbling upon Ray's site. The orchids grew like weeds for me and I gradually shifted the whole collection to S/H with great results.
~ Joff