New pseudobulb!

I always take a good look at all of my orchids when I'm watering them. This is just to make sure they all look like they're doing well and some times, you find new growth.

Today, on the Pacific Sun Spot, I saw the start of a new pseudobulb! This is an orchid I got in, I think, 2012. It was a division from someone else's plant and it had 3 pseudobulbs. With the new pseudobulb, it will have 6. I am still waiting for it to flower but I hope this just means I am one step closer to seeing actual flowers!

Phalaenopsis spikes

It's fall and the temperatures are changing. There is a drastic enough temperature difference between night and day to make me have nightmares and for phalaenopsis to start spiking.

Both the Home Depot orchid and the Balden's Kaleidoscope had started growing new leaves a while ago but they have paused the leaf growth in favor of spikes!

Home Depot orchid's spike is happily growing along. I'm trying to be careful since they are delicate when they start. I have managed to snap spikes off with the clip because I was too eager to attach them to the stake so they grow up instead of just out.

Balden's Kaleidoscope is also starting to produce a spike. Very exciting. But then, I also spotted...

can you see on the right side of the stem? I think that's a second spike. A SECOND SPIKE!!!!!

Twinkle likes its home!

When I was watering the orchids on Saturday, I noticed that Twinkle had sent up spikes from the pseudobulbs it grew this year! I'm so excited!!! Again, it's that feeling of "IT LIKES ME AND THE HOME I PROVIDE FOR IT!" This is the first flowering under my care.

Growing time

The orchids had been slowly growing so there hadn't been anything exciting to report. However, this week, I noticed that both phals are starting new leaves!

I do need to get around to repotting them though.

Orchids are resilient

A couple of days after pulling the fan off of the paph, I noticed a little green nub had emerged from the old fan.

Both fans that had grown out of that old fan had to be removed due to crown rot so I wasn't sure if it would produce more growth but boy, has it shown me! I am taking care of it correctly so I am glad to see the new growth!

Dendrobium growth!

Before I left on my trip, I spotted the start of a new cane on the dendrobium hybrid. I wondered what it would look like after it go back. Well, it looks like this:

I am very excited!

Crown Rot

I had been away for a couple of weeks. In that time, I had dropped off the orchids that needed more day to day care with one friend and had another friend stop by my house once a week to water the rest.

Sadly, when I got home, I found the paph with a case of crown rot.

I suspect this guy is very susceptible to crown rot since this isn't the first time it has happened. Normally, it doesn't take much. If you get water on the leaves and let it sit in the crown of the leaves, the crown starts to turn brown. It's even more likely if you tend to water at night and don't think anything of it. Cold and wet leads to rot with orchids. This is what I had suspected happened.

I'm a little sad since this was the newest fan and I'm hoping that new fans can still develop. I didn't have to replant or anything, I just twisted that fan off, then I applied a little bit of cinnamon to where the wound was to prevent any sort of fungal growth in the open wound, I don't know if you can see the brown powdery substance at the base there.

If this guy doesn't survive, well, it's been a lesson. I know I can keep a paph alive if I make sure he is regularly watered.