Last week I updated you on my new Encyclia cochleata’s bud development, and I’m happy to announce that the plant is now officially in bloom—and it is perfection!
My Encyclia Cochleata Has Bloomed!
Oncidium Blooms + New Orchid Progress Report
I feel like I’ve been sitting around twiddling my thumbs for the longest time, waiting for something interesting to happen with my orchids. Well, now that I have one orchid in bloom and four new orchids, all kind of fun things are going on! First I’ll show you my Oncidium, which is almost in full bloom right now:
My Oncidium Finally Bloomed + New Brassavola nodosa
I was hoping that my NOID Oncidium blooms would start to open up on my birthday (June 13) as they did the last time the plant bloomed two years ago. Well, that didn’t happen, but they did begin to open up the morning after…so, close enough! Compare what the buds looked like yesterday morning…
Orchid Haul from Santa Barbara Orchid Estate
Over the holidays last year I received a lovely gift from my in-laws: a gift certificate for Santa Barbara Orchid Estate. My husband and I visited the place way back in May 2011; it was my first ever visit to an orchid nursery, and I loved it. I didn’t buy anything when we visited because I was worried about transporting orchids safely on a plane (which I have since done successfully). So I was excited to have the opportunity to have some orchids shipped directly to me from the estate!
First Spike in our New Apartment!
My orchids have, sadly, been rather dormant ever since we moved into our current apartment at the end of last June. The “orchid room” window faces southwest rather than south like it did in our last apartment, so the light isn’t quite as bright here. There has been a fair amount of new leaf, root, and pseudobulb growth, but spikes are another story. So I was thrilled at the end of March to discover a spike on my NOID Oncidium that last bloomed for me two years ago! If you follow me on Facebook or Instagram you might already be aware of this development.
The spike was hiding inside the folds between the leaves and the pseudobulb, and it was a little bent but still totally viable. It was about an inch and a half long by the time I found it.
New Apartment, New Orchid Room, & An Update on My Orchid Collection
Well, it’s been far too long since I last posted, yet again. Sorry for that, folks! It’s been a pretty crazy summer, with the biggest news being that we moved into a new apartment in a new neighborhood at the end of June. We lived in the same apartment in Park Slope for four years and our landlord chose not to renew our lease, so we spent the end of May and beginning of June frantically looking for a new place. Once we signed a lease on an apartment in Windsor Terrace we had to actually go through with the moving part, which was NOT FUN AT ALL…but we survived. As upset as we were about having to move apartments, we adore our new place and neighborhood—it’s so quiet and lovely!
So that’s how my orchids ended up with a new growing location, which doubles as the orchid room and my office. I wanted to share my new orchid setup here, along with some photos of what’s been going on with some of my orchids since the move.