Re: Cochleanthes watering questions

I've found that when you get a Cochleanthes up to >8" pot size, moisture
retention does become a problem in plastic pots if watering is not changed.
I've recently started growing them in small bark/ coir/ sponge rock mix
which holds lots of moisture, allows great drainage, and doesn't compact or
deteriorate as fast as spaghnum moss. I've also found that they do better in
clay than plastic at this size. And if humidity is high, watering every 3-4
days is plenty. True, amazonica bloom most from fall- spring, but there are
many hybrids and closely reltaed species that  can keep going all year or
extend blooming through the summer. Look for Pescatoria, Bollea,
Chondrorhyncha, or Kefersteinii and intergeneric hybrids among them and
Cochleanthes for lots of variety. In my experience, Pescatoria tends to be
the most water sensitive of the bunch but its hybrids vary.
Gary

"J Fortuna" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Hi,
>
> I have just acquired my first non-Phal non-Dtps orchid: a Cochleanthes
> amazonica. My understanding from reading about it is that it should do
well
> in Phal-like culture, except it should be watered much more frequently,
> correct?
>
> I read somewhere that someone was successful in cochleanthes growing by
> watering every other day or even every day during the summer, and once a
> week or so during the winter. This large summer-winter dichotomy baffled
me,
> and so I wonder whether it is likely to not apply in our environment: 1)
It
> is a bit drier in our apartment in the winter than during the summer (due
to
> the heating in the winter, and the natural humidity in the DC area in the
> summer). I try to raise humidity through a humidity try and keeping the
> plants together, but I still think that it is bound to be more humid
during
> the summer months here. 2) The orchids grow near a north-facing window
> (unfortuanately all windows here face north) with added light through
> grow-lamps, but even with the lamps I don't believe the light level ever
> gets higher than low to medium, so I don't think the summer sun is likely
to
> cause them to dry out more. 3) Since Cochleanthes flower in the
fall-spring,
> I would have expected them to need more energy and more water then, rather
> than in the summer. Is my logic flawed? Please advise, which if any
seasonal
> changes in watering schedule would you expect in these conditions?
>
> Of course, I will try to observe it and try to water based on my
> understanding of when she seems to need to be watered, but (having started
> my collection with moss-grown orchids) I am still learning to understand
the
> watering needs of plants grown in bark, and thus I rely on a combination
of
> does it seem to need water, and if I can't tell, how long has it been
since
> the last watering (I keep a record of that for the ones in bark).
>
> Finally, has anyone out there ever heard of a cochleanthes suffering from
> over-watering? All the information that I have read has been about
> cochleanthes needing to be watered more and more. Ok, I could water her
> every day, no problem for me, would it be a problem for her?
>
> Thanks,
> Joanna
>
>