Paph stonei

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GuRu

experienced greenhorn
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My Paph. stonei grew a flower spike with 2 buds, some might think this isn't much. But for me as an indoor grower on window sills this was exciting. After the first flower opened I was waiting for the second one to open.....and obviously so did our tomcat. I don't know what fascinated him on these flowers but one morning ca. one week ago i found the second flower broke off on the floor and the first one damaged by a cut in the dorsal. I was thinking a lot if I should post a photo here but in the end I thought...yes I will do so.
It took a bit more than 3 years for the plant to flower again.

Paph. stonei :

07408_21.05.20_paph stonei.jpg
 
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The love/hate relationship between orchids and cats are really a nuisance to the grower lol. That’s why I don’t have cats even though I love them lol.
Years ago...My daughters brought home two kittens they found in a ditch...one of them really liked orchids, or playing in the plants on the windowsill. I like cats also, but we only raised 1 kitten.
 
Very nice flower! My cat loves to bite all my cattleya leaves and chew on it so I use a fine wire mesh to keep him out!
 
Any stonei is a joy... even l'orchidee blessée!

Regarding the cat, Rudolf, maybe you should adhere to: my paternal grandfather's advice. He was a farmer and loved his animals, couldn't really fathom the way those strange townspeople lived with their pets. To him: "cats belonged in the barn (catching mice) and the dog in its kennel!".
He was very devoted to his dog, though, and found it bordering on cruelty to keep dogs, no matter what size, confined in an appartment in the city. He, himself, loved to roam the countryside, taking the dog with him. Even if he stuck to his dictum, if the weather got very badly, especially with thunder, which scared the dog insanely, he would take it inside and sit with it in the utility room untill the thunder had passed, as my grandmother didn't allow any animal inside the house proper!
 
Sorry to hear of the mishap Rudolf. Your stony looks to be a fine one with all the colors and striped dorsal. Single growth?
For 21 years I had to enjoy my plants from afar (greenhouse) because of my wife's freak'in cat. It would eat anything green in a pot! Finally the cat rests peacefully in a wooden box but still I cannot bring plants in for fear of ghosts from the past! Maybe I should seek out therapy 🤔
 
Sorry to hear of the mishap Rudolf. Your stony looks to be a fine one with all the colors and striped dorsal. Single growth?
For 21 years I had to enjoy my plants from afar (greenhouse) because of my wife's freak'in cat. It would eat anything green in a pot! Finally the cat rests peacefully in a wooden box but still I cannot bring plants in for fear of ghosts from the past! Maybe I should seek out therapy 🤔

No need to fear the ghosts of the past, Rick. Dead is dead, nothing else!
To be honest, we have been living together with a tomcat now for about 35 years and this was the very first time a cat struggled with or nibbled at one of my orchids. We aquired this tomcat 2 1/2 years ago from our local home of animals/sanctuary and he is a very vivid one. After his mistake we had a long talk...man to man....and I think he won't do such things in the future.....hopefully. Lol
 
Any stonei is a joy... even l'orchidee blessée!

Regarding the cat, Rudolf, maybe you should adhere to: my paternal grandfather's advice. He was a farmer and loved his animals, couldn't really fathom the way those strange townspeople lived with their pets. To him: "cats belonged in the barn (catching mice) and the dog in its kennel!".
He was very devoted to his dog, though, and found it bordering on cruelty to keep dogs, no matter what size, confined in an appartment in the city. He, himself, loved to roam the countryside, taking the dog with him. Even if he stuck to his dictum, if the weather got very badly, especially with thunder, which scared the dog insanely, he would take it inside and sit with it in the utility room untill the thunder had passed, as my grandmother didn't allow any animal inside the house proper!

Jens, I grew up in a household without any pets but my wife's childhood took course completely opposite. Now after more ore less 35 years living together with a tomcat (of cause castrated) in our household I won't miss these house 'tigers'. The joy they can bring weights more than the trouble they might cause from time to time. So I won't really follow the advice of your grandfather given that we don't own a barn. The tomcat outside the house would break the heart of my wife.
Furthermore I know the relationship between human beeings in general were diferent in the past as they are now. In these day animals were things without emotions and so was the treatment.Maybe some famers may have preserved such thinking until now.....cats in the barn and dogs in the kennel.
Nowadays everybody knows....even animals do have emotions, fears and moments of luck.
As I already wrote here in my post #10....I and our tomcat hat a long talk...man to man....and everything is o.k.
 
I'm glad that you and your tomcat have solved your issue without the need for outside intervention, Rudolf! ;)

My grandfather wasn't one of that kind of farmers, you depict, with an instrumental relationship to the animals. In respect to the view on the relationship between animals and humans, I think you get the history wrong, when we think of the production of livestock the past 50 years.
His farm was small and of a kind, that doesn't exist anymore - mind, this was before farming became highly specialized and was turned into an industry (yes, I'm that old - year 1962). Though, this development started, when I was a kid - when my grandfather retired, his farm was bought by a younger neighbour, who was expanding his new "pig-factory".
My grandfather knew, loved and cared for each of his animals. He would spend most of the night hovering over the pigsty, when one of his pigs were about to give birth, trying to make sure, that the mother pig was in no harms way, and that the newborns got to the tits of the mother, without in the process being squeezed to death. Of course there was a dual concern behind this: the wellfare of the animals, and because the loss of each little piglet meant a loss in income, that wasn't neither adviceable, nor in the long run would have been affordable.
Loving his animals, my grandfather just had a very unsentimental view on them. And unless we are speaking of cats of a delicate and highly sensitive (in)breed pedigree, I'm sure most cats would thrive better in a barn, roaming freely in and around it with their mates, chasing mice for food and fun, rather than spend their days being locked up in an appartment in the city and bored to death 🐱
 
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Sorry to hear of the mishap Rudolf. Your stony looks to be a fine one with all the colors and striped dorsal. Single growth?
For 21 years I had to enjoy my plants from afar (greenhouse) because of my wife's freak'in cat. It would eat anything green in a pot! Finally the cat rests peacefully in a wooden box but still I cannot bring plants in for fear of ghosts from the past! Maybe I should seek out therapy 🤔
Working in the field of psychotherapy, I would propose , that what you need might rather be an exorcist! 👻
 
Jens, my statement was in general and not explicit to your grandfather. In your post #8 it read that your grandfather had a very intense relashioship to his dog but on the other hand he also was a child of that time. Anyway times are changing mostly but not always in a better direction.
 
Congrats on bringing this nice stonei into flower in a windowsill! Its to long ago that i had a flowering one in my collection. I have to Talk some serious words to my plants...
 

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