Phrag. caricinum 'Fox Valley'

[tomkalina]

In bloom this morning in a sunny greenhouse, this compact growing, water-loving species is a native of Peru and Bolivia.

 

[Paphluvr]

Very nice. Your photos are getting better, Tom.

 

[tcosta]

Very nice. Your photos are getting better, Tom.

Very nice.

 

[abax]

Ah Tom, you beat me about a week! Mine is in high bud and you gave me a nice preview...
and also the plant. Thank you. Love that fat pouch.

 

[BrucherT]

In bloom this morning in a sunny greenhouse, this compact growing, water-loving species is a native of Peru and Bolivia.View attachment 30456

This is the one you grow in straight peat? Can we see the whole plant(s)?

 

[tomkalina]

We use one mix for this Section. It's a 6-1-1-1 mixture of Sequoia seedling bark, large perlite, #3 size charcoal and chopped NZ sphagnum moss . We use this mix from compot through adult stages of growth for Phrag. caricinum. Unlike other Sections which are repotted annually, this is one where we repot the adults every 2-3 years as long as the mix hasn't broken down. This clone will be repotted in early Spring, 2022. Here's a photo of the entire plant; it has a (1-2-1) configuration.

 

[abax]

The one I bought from you seems not to be fussy about potting medium at all. I use
the standard Orchiata (mixed sizes) charcoal (also mixed sizes) and perlite. I'm going to
have at least two blooms on one spike. I like this Phrag.

 

[BrucherT]

We use one mix for this Section. It's a 6-1-1-1 mixture of Sequoia seedling bark, large perlite, #3 size charcoal and chopped NZ sphagnum moss . We use this mix from compot through adult stages of growth for Phrag. caricinum. Unlike other Sections which are repotted annually, this is one where we repot the adults every 2-3 years as long as the mix hasn't broken down. This clone will be repotted in early Spring, 2022. Here's a photo of the entire plant; it has a (1-2-1) configuration.

Very cool, Tom! Your stuff is always stellar. Maybe I could grow this one, as you describe. It sits in water too, right? I thought when I saw your compot that it was in peat so thank you for the explanation. Never seen sequoia bark so not familiar at all.

 

[tomkalina]

Thanks Bruch! The Phrag. caricinum 'FV' pot does sit in in tray of rain-water about 1" deep. Unless they've changed recently, Hausermann's uses Sequoia bark in their Paph. seedling mix. We tried substituting Orchiata bark in our mix, and the results were not as good.

 

[BrucherT]

Thanks Bruch! The Phrag. caricinum 'FV' pot does sit in in tray of rain-water about 1" deep. Unless they've changed recently, Hausermann's uses Sequoia bark in their Paph. seedling mix. We tried substituting Orchiata bark in our mix, and the results were not as good.

Wow. I had no idea. I thought it was fir! Turns out, I’m using sequoia all along!

I struggle with Orchiata as well. I had high hopes for it. Plants seem to take forever to adapt to it, so long that by the time they’re growing well, it’s time to repot. No more of that expensive stuff. I’ve had some luck in LECA but after blooming two flowers, your beautiful besseae flavum did not survive a heat wave this summer. I won’t try that again. It also carried off your red besseae, which never really had a chance. Sigh. Onward.