I wonder???

[Arielle35]

after all my current seedlings have grown and been planted and im ready to start over.... does anyone think it would be possible for me to grow these in my house? I dont know what zone they are or anything about them, but they are my all time favorite!!! well orchids
in general are my all time favorite..I just think these orchids are amazing!! they are fly duck orchids

 

[canesisters]

Those are the coolest little flowers!!!!!

 

[Nyboy]

They do look like ducks.

 

[Jared77]

Have you been able to grow orchids in the past? Id start there with some of the heartier strains and get a feel for how to do it. Then work your way up. Id rather kill a 5 dollar plant learning than a hard to find variety of really expensive plant.

Its good to have a goal and I'm sure you could I'd just be reluctant to put up a lot of money on something probably fairly fragile to learn on. Like I said start out simple with the plan of having them in the future.

 

[897tgigvib]

Arielle, Orchids are a wonderful next step!

Please make sure you google up

growing Orchids

Some consider Orchids to be difficult to grow. The actual reality is, some Orchids are easy to grow, others take more work and care, and some require specific conditions and experience.

One of the ways Orchids are classed is by the way their roots are. <<< that seems strange but really is not. Some Orchids grow with their roots in the forest soil and composting leaves. These are called TERRESTRIAL ORCHIDS. Other Orchids grow up in the trees, in the crooks of the branches, in among the moss and debris, and these kinds dangle their roots in the air or kind of cling to the side of the tree they are growing on. This kind is called EPIPHYTIC ORCHIDS. Sorry about the fancy word. I think they like to keep scientists happy and boost their egos by letting them invent fancy words. (Oh well.)

Orchids! They are all in a single family called ORCHIDACEAE. That family belongs to the larger plant group called MONOCOTS that also includes the grasses and the lilies. The Orchidaceae are divided up into something like 800 or 900 Genuses, Genera is the fancy plural for Genus.

Strange thing about Orchids is that a lot of them can cross with each other, even when the geneticists have decided they are barely related to each other. Not all do that, but enough so that Orchid breeders have come up with some amazingly exotic and beautiful new kinds. Thousands and thousands of new kinds actually. See, when they do that, they are also crossing the plant's way of growing. That means the new kind they develop has to have new conditions.

Do not let that make you think Orchids in general require expert or scientific care. Some do, but luckily a lot of them have also been selected for easy growing.

What it really means is that before you get a new kind of Orchid you should ask or find out about how that one is grown.

Some grow as easily as a Geranium. A good number of them simply require special Orchid growing mix and the right kind of light and knowing how often to water them. That growing mix seems to be made of shredded Fir tree bark and other things like perlite puffed rock.

So, make sure you try to find the Latin name of your Orchid, and then do the google search and find the Orchid officianados out there who grow it to see what they say.

 

[Jared77]

I hope I didn't sound like I was trying to scare out of them not at all! I hope you try them and I'm sure you'll have lots of success and enjoyment out of them.

Its like most folks don't learn to start driving by jumping in Ferrari and pulling out into traffic! That's my only concern. And something like those fly duck orchids I bet are more of a Ferrari of the orchid world than the trusty rusty Ford F150 of the orchid world.

 

[897tgigvib]

I looked up fly duck orchid. Wikipedia has an article!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caleana_major

It says they are terrestrial, means they grow with roots in some kind of soil, generally the easier type. It says they are small, which also generally but not necessarily easier, and it says native to australia, and generally native type orchids are easier.

I'll ask Hayley about if she's seen any. These grow wild right in and around Sydney in Eucalyptus forest habitats, and she is near a large forest of Eucalyptus.

It says they are difficult to maintain for more than 2 years. But it does not say why.

===

The Calypso Orchids around where I am are also listed as difficult to keep alive for very long because they have a symbiotic relationship with a soil fungus that also has a symbiotic relationship with the Fir trees. However, my transplants from Orchid Hill to my cabin are successful because I lift them with a large amount of the surrounding compost and then transplant them at my cabin where there are also Fir trees.

I'm only guessing, but these Fly Duck Orchids may have a similar soil fungus requirement that is found in conjunction with Eucalyptus trees.

===

So far Arielle, I would think you should get some Eucalyptus bark, some composted Eucalyptus leaves, and some soil from under Eucalyptus trees.

Those things are DOABLE! Especially if you are determined! I don't think regular Orchid mix will keep them alive much longer than 2 years. Just guessing of course.

But you need Eucalyptus stuff!

===

I for one do not underestimate your ability or determination. But you might want to ALSO try a known easy Orchid. I think one of the easiest is called something like Blettilla. I saw some in Brent and Becky's bulb catalog, can't recall which season catalog though. Maybe get the easy Orchid while you are gathering your resources together for this Fly Duck Orchid.

Then you could do the added challenge with the so called easy Bletilla orchid: Try growing it outside in your zone 4 climate!

 

[journey11]

Those are downright cute!

 

[catjac1975]

I am a lover of orchids also. Though I hate to kill a plant I have a different way of thinking about. It you buy cut flowers they range from a few to hundreds of dollars and die with in a week. If you buy an orchid in bloom or spiking the blooms last months. So sad as it may be to kill a perfectly good plant the joy in it's bloom are worth the cost. Within reason of course.

 

[so lucky]

The orchids that you commonly see for sale in garden centers like Lowes are generally cymbidium orchids. They are pretty easy to grow and get to rebloom. Just keep them under your plant light. I saw some recently that had been dyed a horrible bluish purple. It hurt me to the core to know people are 1) doing that, and 2) buying them!
My favorite orchid is the oncidium, or "dancing lady" but not been able to keep one successfully. That duck orchid is really attractive.