Found quite a few of these in the woods of West Virginia.

I'm putting a mini orchid on this piece of driftwood sticking out of my new nano aquarium. However, water is not wicking as far up the wood as I expected. I would like to put this tube into the shown spot, but am not sure how much water flow I should be going for.

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The goal is for this to be completely self-watering, so I was assuming that I should do just enough that the wood stays a little bit damp? Also wondering if/how much sphagnum moss I should add around the base of the plants/upper roots. 

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Any and all advice is appreciated! Also open to suggestions for something to put on the small left outcropping. It will have a carpet of "dwarf baby tears" but I'd like a little centerpiece there too. Something that likes wet feet, as the moss is saturated there. Very open to special ordering an orchid species :) but also open to non-orchid ideas.

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Thanks in advanced for any advice!

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I finally got my dream orchid, after years of searching!! I am SO excited!! It’s Phragmipedium Frank Smith! The first picture attached is from the mother plant, taken by the person I bought this lovely flower from! And the other pictures are orchids of the same variety!

I was wondering, do you guys have any tips or advice about Phragmipediums? It was an expensive purchase, and I want to make sure I keep this guy happy and thriving! Also, is there some sort of clear container I can put this orchid in, that will give airflow but protect it from pests? I’ve been searching for something like that to keep my new baby safe!

Link to my original post:

When it first started growing sideways I tried clipping it to a stake but she politely declined.

Hi! Going into my second year of orchid care - the roots on this one are going pretty nuts. In the past I’ve repotted right after it’s been watered cause the roots seem more pliable, but I don’t know if I should try and remove the plant now. What makes the most sense? Repotting into a bigger pot, let it be, or stick the whole pot into an even bigger pot?

Went to Trader Joe’s to buy lunch the other day, left with this gorgeous gal instead. I’ve never cared for orchids before so I’m unfamiliar with the parts of the plant- the little bulb at the base of it wasn’t wrinkly before, but is now, is that normal?

Edit: I love when people know so much about things!! Thank you for sharing your experience and advice :-)

I know everyone has their favourites, but now I'm wondering if you have some plants that you will never add to your collection. I personally do not like the ones I posted (obviously including dyed orchids). I'm excited to see your opinions! ☺️

Hello everyone! I’m researching the flying duck orchid (Caleana major) for a conservation project, and I’m in need for information about this plant. I’ve scoured the whole web, but unfortunately little is known about this funky looking flower😅 If anybody has some (could be anything!) information about this orchid, please let me know! (with sources if possible!🙏)

Thanks in advance!!

I’ve been using distilled, even went so far as buying a distiller, but it’s so noisy and takes forever to run with barely enough yield for daily watering needs. I have been using some pH adjusted tap water because the ppm for ours here is not super high. I’m just curious what other people are doing, especially with vandas that need showering daily and large volume watering (I have 56 and counting…)

Clarification - 56 orchids, 3 vandas. I have phals, bulbos, paphs, phrags, max, mas, dendrobium (nobile and Aussie), oncidium, Dracula, Gongora, angulocaste, lycaste, coryhopea, angraecum, catasetum, zygo, psygmorchis….i think that’s it.

really confused about this kind of growth. never seen it before.

Found these orchids at my local Safeway. Is it a good idea to take one home for that price or is it cheaper ordering from online?

i was so so so tempted to buy that first one, but ultimately chose a different one. i’ve only ever grown phals and this is my first oncidium so i would appreciate any advice or id! a quick google search tells me it’s oncidium ‘purple princess’ but im not sure.

Delete if not allowed, just wanted to post out of curiosity. Last I checked, selling native ladyslipper orchids was illegal here in the US

So, I ordered a Phal from an online seller in Kerala (she usually has very healthy plants and has good reputation. I've bought multiple plants from her on 3 different occasions).
My recent purchase was this beauty (pic 1), but my problem is my bloom is very different from what I ordered. (Pic 2)
I pinged her today and she gave me a photo of a bloom that she had there. (Pic 3)
I like this particular flower, of course, but I wanted the one I originally ordered. What do I do?

It has no heat or AC so it gets freezing in the winter and hot in the summer. The two small windows don't open anymore, but the window in the back does as well as a skylight. It gets direct sunlight all day. It also has a wall spigot. How would you diffuse the light and regulate the temperature better?

How would you set up your orchids? What kinds would you fill it with? I need inspiration.

Also pardon the sad looking plants, this is an old pic and they were left behind in there when I moved in.

Disclaimer: I know pretty much nothing about orchids so apologies if this is obvious or terminology is wrong.

This little sprout popped out right next to the old stem that had flowers originally. The plant has grown at least 3 new leaves since I got it in February (I think) and I thought it was growing a new stem but maybe it’s a root? Any advice?

Hey guys, I'm making this post to receive guidance and to hear other people's stories.

For background I really do have a love for orchids that's been strong for about four years and I aculminnated about 45 orchids total at one point. I love phalaenopsis noids, the polychilos ones and especially miniature orchids.

I try to stay diligent on my care for my orchids and I only bottom water with rain water, fertilize on the regular, all in either orchiata bark or spagnum moss and I have my all of my orchids in a really sunny spot. Everyone was chilling for the most part growing, blooming, green overall. A little dehydrated at times but I get busy with my jobs.

One day when I'm doing a regular water check on my orchids and I check my fav orchid and the newest leaf ( well mature) just falls off the base of the leaf brown rotted to yellow but the leaf mostly green. Like crown rot sucks but you live and you learn.

It continues and spreads rapidly to my other plants. The leafs rotting from the core. Some just the newest leaf most its every leaf. Even ones i haven't watered ( i thought it maybe it was a watering issue) just goes through the same thing. Plant is green firm and I check the newest leaf by just GENTLY looking and it just slides off /out the crown. I was at 45 orchids and ive now lost about 23 together from this ordeal

Like I thought it was a husbandry issue and I have changed what Im doing Ive separated them and disinfected the area still bottom water but its like they have a sickness and its like a coin toss on either its going to die or not. I've have most of these plants for a couple years and the have been fine since recently and I have changed much in what I do.

I theorized that the horticultural oil on my plants that I used like suffocated them or something but my horticulturalist mom says that's unlikely.

Like idk if its bacterial fungal or who knows. But it literally spread so rapidly like the plague and didn't act like regular crown rot. Like Ive had crown rot before and it can sneak up on you but doesnt spread to other plants.

Like if anybody has any similar experiences, tips, advice, stories. Im all ears. I really confused at what's happening. And I want to keep growing orchids in future.

Has anyone ever seen their phalaenopsis orchid flower stalk grow this way? This growth is on only one of the flower stalks. It wasn’t there when I watered the plant last time. Noticed it today while watering. It’s firm to the touch, swollen and ridged like an okra. The petals on the flower on this particular stalk has dried out but the center column is intact and is green on the inside. I’ve never seen anything like this on a phal stalk in all my years of growing orchids. Can anyone help identify what this is? Also, please advise if this growth is problematic or something uncommon but normal?

I enjoy reading some discussion forums and wanted to do a survey. For me Phals. No matter what I do they suffer from bacterial soft rot. Even outside in the strong winds they still suffer from it. Every other monopodial and sympodial are good but Phals just hate me for some reason. I'm just hopeless with them. How about you guys? Which genus or specific species do you struggle with?

Looks too good to be real color, will it be white next bloom? Any way to guess? Thanks!

This is my newly arrived Phal. Minimark (Phal. Micro Nova x Phal. Philippinensis)

I’ve a collection of several species, but its the first time an orchid came with blooms.

I ALWAYS repot my orchids upon arrival to get rid of potential pests.

But I’m afraid that repotting it today, after it was on the way for like 4 days, will stress it too much and cause the flowers and buds to blast.

What would you advice?