Friday, January 6, 2012

Dendrobium atroviolaceum ( 'Pygmy' x 'Little Elf' )

This past year I have tried 3 species from New Guinea, Den. violaceum, Den. cuthbertsonii, and Den. atroviolaceum.  I haven't done very well seeing that I put them through some harsh conditions.  They were outside for the end of summer and into fall here in Southern New England.  The temperature wasn't the problem actually, it was the bugs that ate the new growths.  The Den. violaceum and Den. cuthbertsonii are on a fast downward spiral.  I haven't got them to bloom once.  Unfortunately my growing conditions aren't the best for these species.  But, I did get the Den. atroviolaceum to put on a pretty good show before it passed away.  I'll miss this little guy.  Some say this "Pygmy" variant should be a separate species since its a much smaller plant then other Den. atroviolaceum.  I would have to agree with them.  I can't wait to get another. This is from a couple of months ago but I figured I would honor it's existence. RIP

Dendrobium atroviolaceum ('Pygmy' x 'Little Elf')


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3 comments:

  1. RonJanuary 6, 2012 at 4:23 PM

    These flower are superb. It's a species I've always wanted to try but I'm afraid it's a little too big for me, even in the pygmy variety. One tip that helped me with NG Dendrobiums was to give them very high light and that really helped in my case, but I am also able to provide cool temperatures and good humidity.

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  2. AtantaRJanuary 6, 2012 at 6:18 PM

    Thanks Ron! Its the temps and humidity that get me without letting the water sit on them for to long. I mist like crazy to get the humidity up. I'll try more light tho. Oh and the Pygmy version was only about 5 inches tall. Not to big of a plant. Like you said tho, much bigger then most of you species. haha. Thanks again

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  3. UnknownFebruary 6, 2012 at 8:10 PM

    I wouldn't feel too bad about the cuthbertsonii, it's a difficult orchid to grow especially if you can't keep it on the cool side (it's usually restricted to individuals who can get their temps down into the mid to low 50s every night). A warmer growing and slightly larger variant is Den. laevifolium.

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