Time to order Habenaria radiata

[Sirius]

Just wanted to let you all know that Van Bourgondien is selling Habenaria radiata tubers again this year. You can find them at www.dutchbulbs.com The tubers are listed under the Specialty Bulbs section, or you can search for "Egret Flower" and find them that way. They are more expensive this year than last, but today is the first day of a sale (save $25 off a $50 order).

Thanks to conservation efforts, this orchid is no longer on the red list of endangered species!

 

[Yoyo_Jo]

Cool; checked out their website though, and looks like Van Bourgondien only ships to the 48 contiguous United States.

For Canadians, Vesey's carries these bulbs. I've ordered Dahlia tubers and Lily bulbs from them and had great results, so I'm going to try the Habenaria this year.

https://www.veseys.com/ca/en/store/springbulbs/specialtybulbs/egretflower

 

[Elena]

I always liked these, should really get some at some point.

Did yours flower this year, John? Any pictures?

 

[Sirius]

You can also order these in the UK through Thompson and Morgan...

http://www.thompson-morgan.com/plants1/product/p82158/1.html

I forgot that many of the board members live outside of the U.S. Elena: I lost mine last spring, along with 99% of my orchids, when I got sick. I had almost thirty tubers that sprouted! It was an amazing sight, but I never got to see them bloom. I am starting over this year with a new order.

 

[Elena]

Oh, I'm really sorry to hear that, how heartbreaking. I hope you are better now

In UK Hardy Orchids (owned by Ratcliffe) also sell these. They are listed as Pecteilis radiata on the website http://www.hardyorchids.co.uk/ Not sure if they charge per tuber or what, though.

T&M prices seem good, I didn't even realise they sold orchids.

 

[Sirius]

I am glad to see these being offered more places. I had a look at the Ratcliffe site...I wish I could get some of those plants here in the states. Ophrys and Cypripedium are going to be my next addiction, I can tell.

 

[Jorch]

Cool; checked out their website though, and looks like Van Bourgondien only ships to the 48 contiguous United States.

For Canadians, Vesey's carries these bulbs. I've ordered Dahlia tubers and Lily bulbs from them and had great results, so I'm going to try the Habenaria this year.

https://www.veseys.com/ca/en/store/springbulbs/specialtybulbs/egretflower

I ordered 6 Habenaria bulbs from Vesey before, 3 of them were rotten when i got them (tubers wrapped in coir) and the rest didn't grow at all. I called and asked for replacements for the 3, and they said they don't have any more in stock! I might call Fraser Thimble Farm next year to see if they have any in stock

 

[PaphMadMan]

Personally, I wouldn't order ANYTHING from Von Bourgendien/dutchbulb.com, but perhaps others have had satisfactory experiences with them.

 

[Sirius]

The first year I ordered 6 Habenaria tubers from VanB. and all six bloomed. The second year I ordered almost thirty, and each and every one sprouted. This year I am ordering without hesitation and I would encourage others to do the same. I have not found a more reliable U.S. source for these orchids.

With that said, I have not ordered anything else from VanB., so I can't vouch for their other products.

 

[Heather]

I really want to grow these. I know I keep saying this....

 

[Ernie]

Any cultural advice? Grow like irises? What sort of "soil"? Says they're hardy to zone 5 which is me here in Chi-town. I'd guess since we're at the north end of the hardiness range, we'd need to give a south exposure and mulch like crazy?

-Ernie

 

[Yoyo_Jo]

I ordered 6 Habenaria bulbs from Vesey before, 3 of them were rotten when i got them (tubers wrapped in coir) and the rest didn't grow at all. I called and asked for replacements for the 3, and they said they don't have any more in stock! I might call Fraser Thimble Farm next year to see if they have any in stock

That's too bad Jorch, and not the service I would have expected from Veseys at all; they should have refunded your money or given you something else of equivalent value. I'm still going to order the Habenaria from them - I'm itching to try them.

 

[nikv]

The first year I ordered 6 Habenaria tubers from VanB. and all six bloomed. The second year I ordered almost thirty, and each and every one sprouted. This year I am ordering without hesitation and I would encourage others to do the same. I have not found a more reliable U.S. source for these orchids.

With that said, I have not ordered anything else from VanB., so I can't vouch for their other products.

I used to order plants, tubers, bulbs, etc. from VanB until I figured out that they charge about double what other sellers charge. They are probably the most expensive place from which to order plants. I stopped buying from them, and after five years, they have stopped sending me their catalog.

I used to see these offered by McClure and Zimmerman but not recently. They have unusual offerings and top-notch customer service.

 

[Sirius]

Any cultural advice? Grow like irises? What sort of "soil"? Says they're hardy to zone 5 which is me here in Chi-town. I'd guess since we're at the north end of the hardiness range, we'd need to give a south exposure and mulch like crazy?

-Ernie

I can't help you with outdoor cultural advice, but I can tell you how I grow mine. I buy the cheapest bag of African Violet potting soil I can find (acidic PH , tons of peat and hardly any vermiculite). Plant the tubers an inch apart and an inch deep and water so that the soil never dries out. Others have said that you can overwater these and make them rot, but I have never had that happen. I tend to keep my plants warmer growing them indoors, and I think that helps.

I place the pot in a sunny south facing windowsill and that's all there is to it. They grow to 14" tall or so and bloom two or three flowers per plant. A handful of tubers is all you need for a decent show, and the tubers should double at the end of the season so you will have more plants next year. After the vegetation dies down in the fall, stick the whole pot in a plastic bag and pop it in the back of the refrigerator until next spring.

KyushuCalanthe knows way more about these than me. I was hoping he would jump in here and show off some photos of his tubers and plants. I have a couple of photos of these growing in-situ if I can find them.

 

[Sirius]

I used to order plants, tubers, bulbs, etc. from VanB until I figured out that they charge about double what other sellers charge. They are probably the most expensive place from which to order plants.

I guess I would worry about being overcharged for them too if I could find another nursery who carried them as consistently as VanB. Asiatica Nursery used to sell these, and they had the highest price at the time, but they don't even carry them anymore.

 

[Yoyo_Jo]

I received 4 corms today; is a six inch pot for all four of them together large enough?

 

[Kevin]

Did you get yours from Vessey's? How much? Fraser's has them, but I tried to order last fall, but they were sold out. Maybe I can order in the spring for fall delivery.

 

[Jorch]

oh? Kevin, I got 3 from FTF this spring.

I got them back in Feb, and planted them in a shallow 3 inch square bonsai pot. Now they are about 3 inches high, so far so good! *fingers crossed*

 

[Yoyo_Jo]

Did you get yours from Vessey's? How much? Fraser's has them, but I tried to order last fall, but they were sold out. Maybe I can order in the spring for fall delivery.

Yes, Veseys. They're already sprouting too.

 

[parvi_17]

This is interesting. I had no idea you could get these from Vesey's. Maybe next year I'll try some out.