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Oncidium sphacelatum? There were some Epidentrum radicans at the Fairchild Tropical Garden, but that might be warmer than where you are.
 
I didn't see anyone mention Epidendrum conopseum (actually, it has a new name now, but its slipped my mind). Its native to the southeast, found as far north as the Carolina's. I've even considered it in NYC....it would be a stretch...but maybe low on the east side of my house......
 
Hey Ernie

How much difference in climate is there between Orlando and Homestead.

Robert Fuchs has a ton of stuff out doors down there, and could give you lots of ideas.

Hard to believe, but a full 10 degrees F. Our average min is 25-30, theirs is 35-40.
 
I'm sure you've thought of this already, but how about looking around at what people have growing around you? Look at local gardens, botanical gardens, even Disney - I'm sure they have a few orchids naturalized throughout the grounds. Get some ideas and go from there.
 
Hard to believe, but a full 10 degrees F. Our average min is 25-30, theirs is 35-40.

That is not the average minimum temp for Homestead. It is the average lowest temp. The average minimum temp in winter is the high side of 50.
 
I'm sure you've thought of this already, but how about looking around at what people have growing around you? Look at local gardens, botanical gardens, even Disney - I'm sure they have a few orchids naturalized throughout the grounds. Get some ideas and go from there.

Didn't see any at Leu BG. Don't recall any at Sea World. Haven't hit the other parks yet, but will watch. My neighbors don't do much other than palms, avacados, bananas, and such.
 
Never heard of Leu BG - looked it up. Hard to believe that a botanical garden in that type of climate would NOT have orchids as part of the display. What a shame. I was thinking in Disney, perhaps Animal Kingdom and maybe some other places. How much different is your climate from Santa Barbara? Check here for some ideas: http://www.santabarbaraorchidestate.com/ They grow a lot of their plants outside.
 
I don't believe Santa Barbara gets as hot as Orlando in the hot season!! I was in Polk City October 2 years ago and the heat made Orlando seem like the Artic!!! It was hotter than Chicago in the summer!
 
Wouldn't the cold in the winter be more of an issue than the summer heat? I think Ernie is more looking at the frost tollerance. Maybe Santa Barbara stays cool longer in the winter, so Cymbidiums do well, but I'm not sure they would do well in Florida.
 
Santa Barbara is no where near as hot or humid.

Look for Andean species that grow between 1200 and 2000 meters. That altitude has very warm summer temps and also experiences some freezes in winter.

When you grow your plants outdoors just don't expect them to always look perfect like when grown indoors. Wild growing orchids look pretty ragged most of the time because of the unstable environment. Wind, rain, heat,cold, dry, insects, animals all beat the heck out of plants. You should expect the same for garden grown plants. Maybe that is why the flowers are so beautiful?
 
Never heard of Leu BG - looked it up. Hard to believe that a botanical garden in that type of climate would NOT have orchids as part of the display. What a shame. I was thinking in Disney, perhaps Animal Kingdom and maybe some other places. How much different is your climate from Santa Barbara? Check here for some ideas: http://www.santabarbaraorchidestate.com/ They grow a lot of their plants outside.

Big difference between Leu having them and me finding them. :) I asked and just got blank stares. Maybe asked the wrong people.

I did happen upon the SBOE site while looking for a source of L. anceps and they have awesome info and recommendations on cold tolerant plants- many of which we mentioned here.

Yeah, Santa Barbara and us are roughly in the same USDA zone (theirs varies because of such a huge vertical change in the city and surrounding area), but their summers are mild usually because of the proximity to the cool Pacific. I spent some time in SB and the hotel room had a window and a ceiling fan. No A/C, no heater. No it wasn't the usual dives I'd stay in, it was the Montecito http://www.montecitoinn.com/gallery/default.asp and I recommend it highly! If you can't afford those digs, buy a $80,000 light scattering detector from Wyatt Technology on work's tab- they fly you out to SB for a week of training. :p
 
When you grow your plants outdoors just don't expect them to always look perfect like when grown indoors. Wild growing orchids look pretty ragged most of the time because of the unstable environment. Wind, rain, heat,cold, dry, insects, animals all beat the heck out of plants. You should expect the same for garden grown plants. Maybe that is why the flowers are so beautiful?

Agreed! Not looking to grow CCMs, just having fun and learning by gardening/landscaping with orchids. Thanks!
 
I don't believe Santa Barbara gets as hot as Orlando in the hot season!! I was in Polk City October 2 years ago and the heat made Orlando seem like the Artic!!! It was hotter than Chicago in the summer!

You are correct. SB is not as warm or humid as Orlando, it can get some hot days and some cold days, but they are fairly rare and generally not prolonged. The climate is much more moderate than Orlando. Great for growing Cymbidiums and the Mexican Cattleys (Laelias).

Susan
 
You are correct. SB is not as warm or humid as Orlando, it can get some hot days and some cold days, but they are fairly rare and generally not prolonged. The climate is much more moderate than Orlando. Great for growing Cymbidiums and the Mexican Cattleys (Laelias).

Susan

And when the temps in SB hit 100 the humidity is often 8.
 
Yes, I know there are differences in the climates between SB and Orlando, but I thought that since we are mainly talking about frost tollerance, that would be a good place to look. I would assume most of the plants that can survive outside year-round in SB would be fine in Orlando, but maybe not.

I've never been to the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, but would that be a good place to look? Maybe a bit too warm?
 
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