Thanks to Dot, Rose and Eric (and anyone else I may have missed) for the kind compliments. I try very hard to grow my plants well -- as opposed to killing them.
@ John Boy -- just take your time and collect them slowly, one at a time. Pick a variety which you fancy (and preferably one that has good vigor and is easy to grow and multiply). See how you do with it and proceed from there. Increase your collection at a moderately slow pace and remember, prices are not nearly as high as what they used to be.
Ah.....
Thanks for these posts Mark - my plants won't flower for another month so you're priming me nicely, and thank god I don't have to worry about people stealing plants out of my yard...
Mine tend to flower a little earlier than those of other growers in my area, but this is simply due to the fact that I cultivate my Neos primarily under artificial light. I should probably skew my seasonal growing conditions schedule just a little bit more in order to more closely match the natural cycle. I've made a lot of adjustments and it's gotten better over time. I could also shorten my daylengths overall year-round by 15 to 30 minutes and that might help to normalize everything as well. I might even save some money on my electricity bill too!
I could never leave my plants outdoors unattended around here. Roving gangbanger-wannabes would likely vandalize anything I left unprotected
(grrrr). On the other hand, maybe I'm naive, but I'd like to believe that my fellow orchid growers would be above reproach.
I think I forgot to post photos anywhere around here of the opened flowers of both
'Unkai' and
'Houmeiden' so I'll have to double check on that. Variety
'Yasuritakakuma' opened two flowers today with more to come.
'Soubiryu' has two spikes and three of the buds on each spike are developing twin spurs.
'Kinjinrasha' has opened more flowers to add to the first batch.
'Ootakamaru' is in its second flush of bloom for the spring. It looks like my other
'Hanakanzashi' plant is starting to put up spikes, so maybe it will bloom out as
'Oiran' this year. The buds of
'Tosamidori' are coming along nicely on the first spike which formed and the second spike isn't too far behind the first. I expect green flowers in 7 to 10 days. :clap: 'Tis the season! There's no sign of any spiking yet this year for varieties
'Kyokko' ,
'Hisui' ,
'Tenshu' ,
'Ouzanomai' ,
'Surusumi' and others I can't recall, but the summer's not over yet.
