Pk advice.

[newbud]

Hi all. I don't know if this is a repeat question or not but I want to get a little more clarity. I got a flask of these from out west and they recommend starting the little babies out in compots of sphag. Glenn Decker recommends a brew of small to med. bark chips with charcoal, pearlite and oyster. Then talking to my buddy Rick the other night he said he uses large lime stone and a little sphag in between which frankly Rick scares the crap out of me. I'll be growing in a plastic tent in my living room between two huge windows facing southwest. The temps are my biggest challenge as the outdoor temps have been fluctuating between the 20's and the 60's not all in one day but it can do that like last night it got down to 30 and it's supposed to go up to 60 today. I heat with gas logs on propane in the room they're in so I can control the temps between 60 and 77. I mist a couple times a day to try and keep the humidity up and water maybe twice a week and lightly because it's winter. I have some good pictures of them but I'm waiting to see how you do that from Google Pictures as you might have seen in the Clowesia post from Adam. So if you've had success growing these from flask I'd really like to know how you did it. Thanks

 

[Erythrone]

I got 5 flasks of PK (from selfing of my plant) last summer and all my babies are alive after several months in compot. I wanted to wait for larger seedlings before deflasking but I decided to deflask when I saw contamination in most of the flasks, so somme seedlings are still tiny.

I used small bark, small pelite, charcoal mix with sphagnum and oyster shell. Plastic tent for one week only. Temperature: highs of 27 C for the first batch I deflasked in July, with lows of 22 C. For the following months (and for the other ones I put in compot), highs were 20 to 24 and lows 18 to 19. They are misted each morning, and I water and fertilize lightly every week. The pots sit in water all the time. I use Subculture B and M and I never had problem with disease yet. They are grown near T12 and Compact fluo sources of light. Must take some pictures.

 

[Jacknet]

I think I figured it out...

Picture test:

 

[Jacknet]

These are the PK's I was talking about. I'm guessing they're a little too big and should be scaled down some, right?

 

[abax]

Do you mean smaller pots? Maybe three to a pot?

 

[troy]

I always grow my seedling together for a year or so depending how fast they grow, I understand that kovachii is an alkaline grower, may not like all the sphagnum moss, I'd grow it in something like rocks, rockwool, clayballs, pieces of rock or limestone substrate with sand mixed with some fir bark and charcoal

 

[Jacknet]

Thanks guys. Changes are on the way. Will post pictures when complete.

 

[NYEric]

Troy doesn't grow Phrags.

 

[troy]

I grow warmer climate phrags, growing very well!! Just because I don't grow bessae doesn't mean I don't grow phrags my summer 90° days 70° nights for 3 months, they die, the culture info I've recommended here is basically a repeat of what lance 'gonewild', and chuck acker says

 

[NYEric]

I was just poking fun at you. Sorry.

 

[troy]

I'm not offended lol.. I would love to grow a pk x bessae so I called glen and asked him how he grows them, he said year around they never break 80° especially kovachii, very cool grower

 

[Linus_Cello]

I'm not offended lol.. I would love to grow a pk x bessae so I called glen and asked him how he grows them, he said year around they never break 80° especially kovachii, very cool grower

Glen lives in upstate NY where 80+ is not common.
I grow my FS outside for the summer where it's regularly over 80; and water daily, so I think that helps. It's not ideal, but it can be done.

 

[troy]

I was referring to kovachii, bessae I think is a little more heat tolerent, I've killed a nice china dragon, and a very nice fritz schomberg with 2 months of 85 to 90, they stressed with rot, and could not save them. so I made some culture phone calls

 

[eOrchids]

I grow my kovachiis in very cool temps (min: 55'F / max: 70'F) under 4 LED lights (6500k each). I have them sitting in water all the time.

My kovachii clan:

 

[troy]

Very nice!!

 

[newbud]

Thanks guys...

Please note I'm deleting my new account Jacknet and going back to using my old one "newbud".
What is the advantage of putting them in a compot as opposed to one individual plant in a pot. I received some nice Phrag. mix today from Kelly's Korner Orchid Supply. It has fine fir bark, sphagnum, perlite and charcoal. I'm going to repot the seedlings in this so it drains better.

 

[abax]

I may be incorrect, but I put small plants with somewhat undeveloped
roots two or three to a small clay pot mostly to keep the medium
from being too wet. They do seem to like the company...I donno why.