P.maculata/praecox epiphytic growing?

[robsorchids]

hi sadly i have rotted both of my maculata and praecox, i've tried twice now to grow these but everytime the same happens, they start growing well, but then the roots rot.

i try very free draining mixes but still they rot.

i water when the medium starts to dry out, should these be watered when the medium is completely dried? this would seem too drastic to me.

i'm sure i read somewhere that these two species grow better epiphytically? this would give excellent free air flow around the roots and growing them in a similar style to stanhopea (aquatic plant pots with many holes filled with spagnum moss and perlite)

has anyone tried this? i still have the plants and they are still green with leaves, but no roots have formed for many weeks now.
if i can transfer the plants to epiphytic conditions all the better.

thanks
rob

[Slug Killer]

Hi Rob, not to sure what your doing wrong mate as this time of the year when in full leaf I water on a regular basis and with the heat we have just had I was doing so on a daily basis. How do you know the roots have not grown for weeks and how did you know they had rotted off? Pleione maculata, praecox and saxicola have very delicate roots which will damage easily if you are removing them from their medium to check on root growth every week or so (this will kill them). I've got about twenty preacox and some maculata in a cold frame outside as they are now in full growth and it's plenty warm enough for them. With saxicola I often start off in a pot of 'countryside' moss which is stood in water allowing moisture to be taken up when needed. Once roots have developed I transfer in to my normal Pleione mix to allow the roots to establish themselves and become firmer. I find the problem with leaving in moss is the roots grow well but are allways very weak.

Where are you keeping your plants? It could be that you are allowing them to get too dry which will also kill them. Have the roots rotted off completely and no longer there or are they shrivelled up small, thin and brown?

Dave

[Paul T]

Rob,

Sphagnum moss is a natural anti-biotic so it may help with keeping pathogens to a minimum.  Might help a little with bacterial rot or whatever it is destroying the roots.  Apparently it used to be used as a poultice on wounds as it helped stop infections.  Worth giving some of the bulbs a go in some sphagnum for that reason alone.... at least for long enough for them to have new roots emerging if they're going to.

Do the new leaves have bulbs being produced at the base of them?  Even without the roots I think a large original bulb can still produce a good daughter bulb just from the reserves within the original.  It might mean that even if no new roots are produced you still end up with a small bulb at the end of the season to try again next year with?

[johanneshoeller]

Rob, have you these Pleiones for some years or are they new?
Maculata, praecox and saxicola produce new roots very early in autumn. The most in mail-order available P. have destroyed roots and these roots will not grow more. And then, if you water too much, they will die.

I think Sphagnum is very good for the growth, but then it must be alive!

This year I have experienced with bulbs which looked to be dead. The buds with the roots and parts of the bulbs were rotten, no sleeping buds seen. I removed the rotted parts, put the bulbs into a fungicide (Dithane) and then into the fridge. In late April I put them into fine bark, kept them cool
(10°C). After 3 weeks the bulbs showed new leaves and now many roots. Most will survive.
I know maculata like warmer conditions than the other Pleiones, but do not resign, use a fungicide and do not water too much.

I also have problems with maculata! It is too cold here.

[lkelly]

I've been succesfully growing saxicola fo a while but praecox and maculat just don't like me.

However after having a read of some of these posts I'm going to give them another go, my plan is as follows (please let me know if it doesn't look like a plan  )

winter them in the conservatory on moss which is kept damn from the bottom
one we get into the growing season, May ish, start to treat them like the other Pleiones
stick them in normal compost and water normally

seem reasonable?

[Slug Killer]

Is your conservatory heated?

Dave

[lkelly]

it is but I tend to keep it colder than the rest of the house over winter by setting the thermostatic value very low

[Slug Killer]

They will need a minimum of 10 degrees centigrade. If you are buying newly imported bulbs that have no roots, I would use the moss until some growth appears as it does tend to get the plants going and then transfer to your 'normal' Pleione mix. I'm not a fan of leaving them in moss but that's just me and there are plenty of others who swear by it. Water from below for a few minutes as you suggest but a light mist from above now and again will not do any harm. I find the best place to keep them if you only have a few is the bathroom windowsill.

Out of interset, how are you keeping the saxicola over winter?

Regards

David