Kevin,

Sorry I haven't had any experience at all. But, according to what I read, I think you did a right thing, exposing it in a cold temperature and dry environment for a while. This harsh period of dormancy together with a tiny pot size for its root mass is very important for blooming, I hear. It is very difficult for a novice like me who cannot accept anything like torture to my loved ones. But I am slowly learning. I think, though I am not certain, they need to have stresses of imminent possible death to prepare for a final bravura.

Among the historiclly valued favorites in Japan, Neofinetia falcata is reltively easy to find here but not this Sekkoku (Dendrobium moniliforme). You are lucky even growing one. I heard the fragrance is very good too. I would very much like to have one.

Could you share how you describe the fragrance and why you love it?

Dash

My plants are just setting buds now, so I really can't describe the fragrance in any detail. From past recollection, I only remember it as being sweet.

I really don't grow these for the flowers. Yes I want to be able to bloom them, but I primarily grow them because I love the plants themselves. If I remember correctly there are over 100 cultivars of this Dend all with very unique characteristics. Because of their small size - some only a couple of inches tall - it's easy to accommodate quite a few in a relatively small space. Of course all of mine go outside for the summer.

If you're interested in purchasing some I highly recommend New World Orchids (link below). If you love Neos, you'll find an incredible selection of those too. Some of the prices will make your jaw drop, but it's still fun to look at the possibilities. He has great plants and shipping charges are very reasonable.

Kevin

Here is a link that might be useful: New World

Kevin,

As a naive novice, I was trying to purchase some relatively affordable Neos from New World. But I was requesting blooming sizes. Then, I realized I just could not come up with the budget.

Yes, I agree New World may be the only place to shop for Japanese orchids and the owner is nice and friendly. But for Dendribium muniliforme, there is no price listed. That means my jaw surely will drop when I ask. I hope I will have enough strength and worldliness to ask that question soon. :)

The price for the Dends is $25 each or buy 4 and get one free.

Hey Kevin,

One of my 3 has bloomed beautifully for weeks each year, but 58F is the lowest they can get here during the winter. The other 2 haven't bloomed. Originally, I had 10+, but they never bloomed either.

OT - yesterday, I ordered a Hab dentata from Parkside and thought of you. It was $25. The only other place I've ever seen them was Zephyrus, whose prices started at $100 a couple of years ago.

In case you're interested, Parkside also has (had?) Hab medusae for $25. Mine have bloomed well in the Warm room and have produced new corms each of the last 2 years. WC

WC

Thanks for the info concerning the Habs. I kind of gave up on finding medusae since every time I did see it the asking price was way over my budget. The Parkside prices are very good. Maybe, just maybe......

Here's another one you should consider. It's a pretty small grower and also comes in a yellow form. I think Andy's has both. At least he did earlier in the year. Like the others it goes dormant in winter, but doesn't need a cold rest. I just keep mine in a cabinet in my bedroom until it sprouts later in the spring.

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K

Kevin, re: the medusae, Tom at Parkside has been swell to deal with, and their packaging is almost 2nd to none, in my limited experience.

The medusae's almost halfway down the page: http://www.parksideorchids.com/misc_others.htm

They ship on Mon. and Tues.

I mean, just *look* at this! Hab dentata

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Almost halfway down the page: http://www.parksideorchids.com/misc_others.htm

Thanks for the suggestion of the rodocheila. So far, that one hasn't gotten to the gotta-have list.

Which reminds me - have you ever ordered & bloomed out either of these from Andy:

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Den delacourii

http://www.andysorchids.com/pictureframe.asp?pic=images/Species/2815med.jpg&PicId=2815&PicNam=Dendrobium%20-%20delacourii

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Den moniliforme, China form

http://www.andysorchids.com/pictureframe.asp?pic=images/Species/5013med.jpg&PicId=5013&PicNam=Dendrobium%20-%20moniliforme%20%28China%20form%29

If so, are the colors the same as in these pix on his site? They're subtle and yummy.

Thanks, WC8

Yes, I'll probably order both Habs since as we all know, it doesn't make sense to order just ONE orchid. The size of dentata is a bit of a concern, but since it does go dormant for winter maybe that won't be so much of an issue.

I did grow Den delacourii for a few years, but somehow killed it. I can't remember the gory details,but it was a nice, small plant with (as I remember) lovely greenish, cream flowers. Maybe I killed it because it's a warm grower? I don't do well with those if it is. The other one is not familiar to me.

K

Woo hoo for you! I'm excited both Habs are available at a decent price.

Size of the dentata - Jay's says medium to large. Do you know the approximate width/height?

Thanks for the info on your delacourii. Jay's pix are of green flowers and of white. As for temps, Andy's says I-W: 58ðF min. to 88ðF max. Jay says hot to warm.

I'll check w/ Andy about colors of the delacourii and the Den mon.

WC8

Thought I would post a pic of one of the Dends - 'Raizan' - just so you could see how they are progressing. As you can see, lots and lots of buds. In fact there are many more that don't show up in this photo.

Kevin

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That's gonna be a beauty.

Update:

Same plant in bloom. The fragrance is heavenly - kind of Lily-of-the-Valley-like.

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K

WC

Forgot to say, I finally got around to ordering the plants from Parkside. Here's what they are sending me:

Habenaria dentata
Habenaria medusae
Habenaria rhodocheila 'Orange' x sib (I have the pink form already)
Koelensteinia ionoptera (This one looked very cool and was totally unknown to me)

K

Kevin, the plant is yummy - your shot of it, too. I'll be interested to know what you think of the Parkside order. The Koelensteinia flowers look like candy. WC8

Got into this late. Got a Dend moniliforme last fall. It's been in the cold house with the Dracula etc and is now covered with buds. I did nor keep it bone dry but definitely put it in a dry place.

Nick

Part of the reason I kept mine so dry was because they are planted in sphag. Since it takes a while for this stuff to dry out, I didn't think the combo of a cold environment and wet sphag would be too good. Luckily it worked out. I think I'll be switching over to a bark mix this spring. Sphag also doesn't work too well for plants grown outdoors in the summer especially if we have a lot of rain like we did early last season.

Ideally, I think these plants would do well and look wonderful mounted. You could do several of them on a large branch. Unfortunately, I just don't have the room for something like that.

Here's one more currently in bloom. The fragrance of these is truly amazing. The minute you walk into my house you can smell them and it doesn't go away at night like some orchids. It's very consistent throughout the day and evening.

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When I ordered my first batch of these I didn't pay too much attention to flower color and ended up with mostly pinkish/lavender/white. I think most people grow these for all the variations in growth habit/foliage/etc. They really are incredibly beautiful plants even out of bloom.

I was looking over the list at New World Orchids and noticed there are some with cherry red flowers, yellow flowers and even a pinkish one with an orange throat. Those will probably be my next purchases.

Kevin

Kevin, the Kanayama is a knock-out. The coolest spot in our house during winter is mid- to high 50s. Because only 1 of 4 Den mons here bloomed, I'll enjoy pix of yours. One of the non-bloomers would have had cherry red flowers. It'd be fun to see pix of yours when it blooms.

Also, how did the Parkside order work out for you? WC8

WC

Just got the Parkside order today. I'm very pleased with all and can't believe how cheap that Hab medusae was.

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Kevin

Kevin,

Good for Parkside. Those look like nice plants. Had you ever seen the dentata for sale? If so, what was the price?

Enjoy.

WC

I wasn't aware of dentata's existence until you pointed it out here, so no - I've never seen it offered anywhere else. I just checked Andy's and they have medusae for $85 which is over 3 times what I paid at Parkside.

Last night, I saw it on Andy's, too. Zephyrus Orchids in Canada has the dentata for $80 & up; medusae for $100 & up; & a couple of Habs I haven't seen before.

Here is a link that might be useful: Habenarias at Zephyrus Orchids