venustum and wardii

[Rick]

You've seen this one before, but this year its been growing in the basket and has 2 blooming growths.



As Uri would say "seed grown" venustum. Its a selfing of a plant I got from Andy's several years ago. Venustum seem to be very hard seed to germinate and get significant numbers through flasking. I think I only got one seedling from Troy from this breeding, and none from a previous outcross with one of Uri's plants.
This plant has done very good in basket and low K fertilizing. Out of flask date is 3/29/2010, and thats the parent plant in the foreground.

 

[Stone]

I like these Rick. What's the venustum growing in?
Looks like you are putting them in baskets while fairly small from what I can make out with the other plants in the pic.?

 

[Paph_LdyMacBeth]

Both are excellent, but I am particularly taken with the wardii. I will have to revisit the thread on your basket culture.

 

[W. Beetus]

Nice venustum! And it sounds like a fast grower.

 

[SlipperKing]

Wow impressive Rick! Is the parent plant making a comeback?

 

[SlipperFan]

I like the wardii.

 

[paphioboy]

Nice blooms. How heavily/frequently do you water, Rick? The moss in the venustum pic seems to have deteriorated (looks a bit black to me, maybe covered with algae). Might be time to renew the moss and check the roots after the flowers are done.

 

[Rick]

Is the parent plant making a comeback?

Yes, and it has a blooming size growth, so may see one off it too this season.

 

[Rick]

Nice blooms. How heavily/frequently do you water, Rick? The moss in the venustum pic seems to have deteriorated (looks a bit black to me, maybe covered with algae). Might be time to renew the moss and check the roots after the flowers are done.

The baskets are good to get hit with water almost every day, but they can get coated up with the blue/green slime. Its actually just on the surface. In general the blue/green has been declining with decreasing fertilizer, and I've added some plugs of live moss, which are spreading across the top. The roots are in good shape with some recent new ones burrowing into the moss. The new growth just started last month about the time the flower started spiking.

 

[Rick]

I like these Rick. What's the venustum growing in?
Looks like you are putting them in baskets while fairly small from what I can make out with the other plants in the pic.?

I started the basket method December 2010/Jan 2011 (started a thread to mark the date). The venustum was one of the first to go into the system. Mostly sphagnum, but either hydroton or limestone gravel and some sand. The venustum came out of flask end of March 2010 so it was only a couple of inches across when it went into the basket.

I have put large multigrowth adult plants into the baskets too. Stonei, supardii, kolopakingii. They can all do it . Sanderianum and henryanum really like it a lot.

 

[JeanLux]

Great job again Rick; I esp. like the venustum!!!! (1 seedling is, unfortunately, a rather minimal outcome for all that flasking proc. ). Jean

 

[Rick]

(1 seedling is, unfortunately, a rather minimal outcome for all that flasking proc. ). Jean

I know I looked back at the flasking record, and there were actually only 2 seedlings that made it. I split with Troy and got the one.

As mentioned this low yield seems to be a common problem with this species, which is so surprising to me given how often we see this species as a vigorous grower that turns readily into big specimen plants.

In comparison sukhakulii, wardii, and calosum seem to have no problems at all, and germinate in the hundreds.

 

[biothanasis]

Gorgeous blooms!!

 

[Mrs. Paph]

Very nice, both of them! ...but reminds me that my first colored venustum seedling to reach blooming size was in sheath, but just noticed last week it blasted before making it out of the leaves Looks like something from the shelf above may have dripped into it! Grrr. Unnecessarily harsh reminder that even indoors I need to watch when I'm watering now that it's cooling off!

 

[NYEric]

I have started some baskets too. You people are making me crazy! Love the wardii, thanks for sharing.

 

[GuRu]

Lovely both of them !!
I'm surprise of the short term between deflasking and flowering of this venustum !!