What's Goin' On - In My Garden!

[Oldandintheway]

Shesa - If I'm lucky, the white one could flower next spring, but the red one will take a couple of years at least. (it is only tube stock, so a brand new seedling)
I've been buying more small seedling orchids, some should arrive today & will need potting up. They may take 2-3 years to reach adult flowering size?
Going to be 30c here today & not a cloud in the sky (we could sure use some rain) & the yard needs watering, which is expensive using the town water.

[meebo1]

Two of them are flowering again, and I haven't given up on the others quite yet

[Oldandintheway]

Good news meebs - orchids are amazingly hardy, so give them plenty of chance to pick up.
A couple of mine I cooked are indeed coming back, when I thought they were goners!

[Oldandintheway]

G'day all

Just found a couple of "old" pix of my Dendrobium speciosum (an Oz native) the last time it was in one giant piece, & flowered for me at my last home B4 the move, nearly 3 years ago now!
It had to be split up into about a dozen bits to move it here, & my brother now has several pieces also.
Most of the pieces have flowered for me here since.
In these pix, it had at least 120 fronds of blooms at that time, & I'd never seen it looking better. Must have had a good season then!

[meebo1]

I thought at first it was a snow picture My eyesight is just not what it used to be

[Shesawaya38485]

Meebo - so glad that your orchids are pulling through. From what little I know you, Orchids seem to match your personality - beautiful, serene and determined to survive what ever life puts you through!!

OLD - I'm sure it will be worth the wait on the red bush - the pictures you showed of a mature one were awesome! Love the white orchid too - does being a "native" plant make the blooms smaller and more profuse than the orchids you usually post pics of or does it just depend on the species?

Keep posting pics!! Need something to get me through the dreary winter!! I'm off today to plant the spring flowering bulbs I picked up on sale a few weeks ago. The drought here is so bad that my mums have quit flowering and I might have to water through the winter if we don't get rain. That's a COLD thought! Did you get your new seedlings planted?

[Oldandintheway]

Shesa - yes, the seedlings are in the ground (post #189) hard to see them 'cause they're so small - but would you believe, that the white bottle brush appears to be developing flowers ATM. I hope so anyway.

Orchid flower size depends upon the species, but as a general rule, the man made hybrids are usually bred to increase the size.
That white orchid of mine has very many smallish flowers along the frond (or spike, as it's called) but each spike is over a foot long x about 4 - 6 inches in diameter.
Imagine that, times 120 spikes! It was amazing I can tell you.

[Oldandintheway]

Here ya go! More spring/summer orchid blooms out now.

Meet my latest baby I was given last Sunday. This was one of the types I fried in the "shade sauna" which are still on the road to recovery.
This is an endemic far north Queensland example of Phalaenopsis heiroglyphicia, which only occurs in a tiny isolated pocket of coastal tropical jungle, & therefore very rare to see, let alone get a hold of. This one is being treated like Royalty for sure & is it's first flowering.
Notice the hand made wooden basket I made for my Royal bub!



Next is a miniature - Vanda testacea - its 2nd flowering for me & has improved this year by putting out 2 spikes - SO - I must be doing something right
The whole plant is only about the size of my palm & individual flowers around small fingernail diameter.



Below is another north Qld. native, Dendrobium discolor - these grow into huge clumps in their local area, but it's a bit of a struggle for them this far south, so I'm happy to be able to flower it at all.



Finally - Phalaenopsis Brother's Gold - 2nd or 3rd flowering for me & again, has improved by increasing the length of the spike & number of blooms on this occasion.



Enjoy!

[Shesawaya38485]

What beautiful orchids!!! You take wonderful pictures - makes me want to reach out and touch them - lol!!!

Finally got some rain the night before last - VERY much needed but not enough to quench the drought. Got our first frost last night - totally wiped out my castor plants and the remaining impatiens. The mums are done too, it's been too dry for them to put on new heads I did bring inside a small potted Hibiscus (Rose of Sharon) bush that is blooming now. It is to go where Bailey is buried but I was afraid to plant it now due to lack of rain.

Got to spend 3 whole days outside doing winter clean up and I'm now taking a break - twisted my knee somehow so it needs to rest more than me - lol! I did get a lot done but have more to do and still some 60 degree days coming up for the odds and ends jobs.

Thanks again for the pics, OLD!!

[Oldandintheway]

No worries Shesa - glad you enjoyed them!
Like you, we need rain very badly here. Some of my neighbours are out of tank water & are relying on town water, which is expensive, therefore their gardens suffer!
I will have a couple more orchids in flower shortly, plus a Hoya, which I'm hoping to identify when it opens.
Can't do much about knees, except rest & perhaps a liniment rub of some sort. Hope it improves ASAP.