The LC and Pot basically are Cattleyas, they are crosses between Cattleya and other orchids. The other 2 are crosses between Oncidiums, Miltonia and Brassia.

In relation to Hoyas, the LC and Pot would want much brighter light, indoors a south window would be good. Outdoors in spring and summer would be helpful but not full sun. Coarse orchid bark ( 3/4") would work maybe some perlite but in general very open.

I don't grow Brationia or Aliceara but given the plants in the background I would say more light than the Hoya but less than a Cattleya. Mix would also be between the Hoya and Cattleya. For Oncidiums I mix coarse bark with chopped sphagnum moss to drain freely and retain some moisture.

Watering and fertilizer looks similar to Hoyas.

With more info on your growing conditions and environment people here can give you more advice.

I have a room in my house dedicated to my plants. I am growing under two t-8 (four lights per bar) fixtures, one fixture is LED(full spectrum), the others are 6500K daylight fluorescent. Have them on a 15 hour timer. My wall has mylar film over it, so that light reflects. I also have a "grow desk" that has 4 UFO LED bulbs affixed above it. I keep the room at 68 degrees fahrenheit, have a fan overhead on, as well as a box fan, to disperse air. I use humidity trays and also have a humidifer (I don't turn it on, as the humidity in that room is above average-hygrometer reads 40-45%-it is adjacent to our half bath/laundry room). This room also has a large South facing window and an East facing sliding glass door. If it wasn't always overcast here (WA State, Puget Sound), there would not be as much need for supplemental lighting. The shelving unit is also a corner unit by the window, so only the plants under the window sill receive light from the window. The desk is in the corner, opposite the shelving unit, by the East facing door. I use the desk mostly for smaller plants or newly rooted plants. Some of my hoya that prefer less light also go there, as we have rigged the LED's over the desk to cover only half of it, if that makes sense.

My hoya are always under the t-8 lights (I get that they are supposedly indirect light lovers, but I, and others, have had great success growing most hoya (there are some that do require less light) under them. They get watered weekly to bi-weekly, depending on individual type, with MSU at 1/4 strength (1/2 strength in summer), and I supplement with a bloom booster (again at 1/2 strength) one to two times a month in the spring and summer.

Does that help any?

This post was edited by AuroraWA on Mon, Jan 5, 15 at 21:08

Sounds like you should be fine with your set up, just keep the pots on the small side and the mix coarse. They are pretty tough plants.

The Vanilla will be a challenge, they grow quick and can get huge. You will need to train it around a support as it grows. They make roots along the vine that will want to attach to something. When new the roots break easily and seem to die off if they don't make contact with a hard surface.

Would a teak trellis work (I have one that is 6' tall x approx 2' wide)?

I've not grown vanilla myself, but from what I've read, the vines can grow 20-30 feet long. Many train them up a tree. Check out the orchid galley forum for pictures of set ups.

Here's a picture of mine. I made the support out of an old patio table that fell apart. A teak trellis should work fine. You might find that as it grow roots up on the trellis the roots in the pot die off. At that point it becomes a mounted plant, which is fine. The problem is how to water it indoors.

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Your vanilla plant is lovely, lumpy_j! I will water mine in the laundry room. There is a shower in there, so it shouldn't be a problem.

Thank you all for the advice! If you want, I will post pictures as they arrive. He also got me some other orchids, but I have no clue what type because he is holding out on me! He says the ones he is not telling me about are in spike/bud. The ones I know about are bloom size or close to, with no active bud/spikes.

Oh, another question. I was reading up on growing vanilla, and some say that once it becomes truly epiphytic, you can turn the trellis (or whatever you have it mounted to) upside down once it reaches the top. Then, flip it again once it reaches the top again. Is this okay to do? I don't expect to get blooms from it, but I never say never. I do know that you have to hand pollinate if you want beans, and I know the curing process can be tedious.

I never thought of flipping the trellis before, I guess it would work. I'm really trying to figure this out for myself for the most part.

I did get flowers and beans a few times but was never able to make much from them.

Good luck

There are some types of material that you can wrap around a stake for Vanilla plants. Then when you use the clips they grab onto the stake instead of squeazing the vine.

Well, a few arrived today. Lc. needed dividing - was huge and a note said it would need repotting. The brat and ali were a bit disappointing, half of each has some very wrinkled pseudobulbs. The good news is that they are older pseudos, and the young ones are very plump. The bad news, half the plant will need to be disposed of when the pseudos yellow/brown.

And then came the surprises: A couple of the ones DH did not tell me about arrived. Two paphs, in bloom!

Paph. 'Odette's Vision':

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Paph. 'Venus Night':

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Beautiful. Your hubby did a good job!

Congrats!

Jane

Thank you very much, Jane!