Orchid of the Week: Cirrhopetalum Lovely Elizabeth

cirrhopetalum lovely elizabeth

When you see this orchid flower you may wonder if it is it real. It certainly doesn’t resemble any flowers you see in your day to day life, but there is something intriguing about it.Maybe it is the bold contrast of pink spotting on the cream background or the tapering slender flow of the flowers, possibly the unusually fimbriation on the top segment of the flower, or the gently bobbing hinged lip. Whatever it is about this flower that attracts or repels you, you certainly must agree it grabs your attention. Cirrhopetalum Lovely Elizabeth is a hybrid of Cirr. Elizabeth Anne crossed with Cirr. rothschildianum. It blooms only once a year, but because it makes several growths each year when grown well, it is capable of putting on quite a show! 

Required Light: In the greenhouse I use 50% shade cloth and have it in a spot where it gets mostly morning and afternoon sun but not Midday.  Under artificial lights like T5 fluorescents I recommend it be 16” underneath at least two 4 foot T5 bulbs.

Temperature: This orchid prefers night-time temperatures to be between 65° F – 75° F. Daytime temperatures can easily reach the mid 90’s without causing a problem.

Humidity: Best kept at 60% RH or higher.

Required Watering: Depending on environmental factors, twice a week or more under normal conditions. More waterings are generally necessary when it is hotter in the growing environment. Clean water is preferred by this orchid genus of orchids so a Reverse Osmosis water filter may be necessary depending on your water quality.

Fertilizer: Should be applied at ¼ strength weekly. I prefer to use the Grow More brand of fertilizers.

Potting: Should be done annually as you see new roots just starting to emerge from the newest pseudoblulbs. I use a mixture of 4 parts coconut husk chips, 2 parts #4 Perlite, and 1 part Hydroton. Also I prefer plastic pots as they will not dry out as fast allowing the roots to stay comfortably moist.

To learn more about orchids and orchid growing contact the American Orchid Society or your local Orchid Society.

Indoor Garden Lighting (Part 1): Obstacles to Overcome!

Image courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net

“Fiat Lux,” Latin for “let there be light,” is the famous quote that begins the third verse of Genesis.  We all know that plants need light to carry out photosynthesis and the best (and cheapest) way to get it is to use natural sunlight.  Alas, that is a luxury many of us don’t have.  We are relegated to growing our plants indoors; in closets and cubbies, in basements and bedrooms.  So for us, what is the best way to light our gardens?  We have several options: Fluorescents, HID (Metal Halide or High Pressure Sodium), Plasmas, and LEDs.  What basic grow light information do we need to know when we choose how to light our garden(s)?  First we need to know what our obstacles are…

One of the biggest problems we as indoor gardeners face is that most of our lighting options produce heat, a lot of heat; approximately 3.4 BTU (British Thermal Units) per hour/per watt.  That means that a single 1,000 watt HPS light system generates 3,400 BTU of heat every hour.  A BTU is the amount of energy required to raise 1 pound of water 1 degree Fahrenheit.  To give you an idea how much heat that is; each 1,000 watt HPS light radiates enough heat into a grow room to boil 3 gallons of water an hour!

Another obstacle for indoor lighting is the penetration of light through the plant canopy.  Light diminishes from its source with distance.  The relationship of light emitted from a point source (a bulb) and distance is known as the inverse square law.  The law states that the intensity of light changes in inverse proportion to the square of the distance or I (intensity) = L (light) / D (distance.)  That means that the intensity of light 2 feet away from the source is 25% of the intensity 1 foot from the same source.

The last challenge of indoor grow lights is that most lighting requires huge amounts of electricity.  In order to cover a 10’ x 10’ room high light plants require 4,000 watts of lighting or more.  The average American household uses 14,000 watts of electricity per day according to the Department of Energy so the above mentioned garden would account for 28.6% of their total electrical consumption.  Use this handy electrical usage guide to find out how much your electricty will cost per month.  With the cost of electricity ever on the rise the search for more efficient horticultural lighting has LED down several roads…  Check out part 2 of this blog series for a review of different types of horticultural lighting and how they stack up.