Phalaenopsis pantherina

Finally have a few things blooming to offset the greenness of the grow area, so I'm not complaining. This is Phal. pantherina 'Chiba' x 'Chin'. It was recently transplanted but still managed to make a few buds so I'm really happy to see that it managed to push out a flower. The first bloom was weird with two dorsal sepals and no lip, so I cut it out and here's the second bloom that is thankfully normal-looking. And yes, this species is endemic to Borneo.

I'm giving this species more light along with the Phal. cornu-cervi, at about 2500 FC. The cornu-cervi has not spiked yet despite the higher light treatment but is making roots like crazy. I'm giving it a dry period for a couple of weeks perhaps this will encourage it to spike...

Phalaenopsis violacea var. alba 'Morningstar' x 'H.P.'

I was lucky enough to obtain this beautiful plant from Orchidview this week, along with two indigo seedlings. Phal. violacea is found in peninsular Malaysia, so is not a Borneo phal per-se, even though it is closely related to Phal. bellina. The two species have distinct, but very pleasing scents so that's a total bonus. Really excited to have this violacea alba among the other phals.

Grow area pest control

*Non-orchid post warning*

One of the perennial problems that most orchid growers face is from pests. This requires constant vigilance and monitoring of the grow area for these bugs. Most of the orchids I have are in 100% NZ sphagnum so it tends to be a lot cleaner than using other substrates. Even so, I do see some fungus gnats and whiteflies (from my outdoor tomato plants...) flying around indoors, which brings me to this carnivorous plant that I got a few months ago. This is Pinguicula Sethos, a primary hybrid of Pinguicula ehlersiae and Pinguicula moranensis, putting up a really cute flower with a spur!

It is quite happy living among the orchids and has even caught a few fungus gnats. That's a good indication that things are pretty pest-free at the moment but it's great that this Ping is acting like a living, breathing, monitoring device that also happens to be a pest control agent!

Phalaenopsis bellina fma. coerulea

Very excited to get my first bellina to bloom! This is NF262 'Blue Lagoon' x 'Blue Bird'. I really like it but I'm a bit worried because there's only three leaves on this plant and it has a tendency to get bacterial rot on the tips of its leaves. I've moved it to an area with more air circulation to hopefully prevent any future damage to the leaves. When this plant gets bigger, the petals should fatten up more so I'm looking forward to the next bloom season. This is a surprisingly nice sized flower with 5.9 cm NS and 5 cm VNS.

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