 |
| Stanhopea Culture |
|
| The genus Stanhopea was described & named by Sir William Hooker, as a tribute to Philip Stanhope who was the President of the London Medico-Botanical Society, in 1829. These plants have a flower that you either love or hate. The flowers which grows downwards are intricately structured, & have a formed walkway that allows a particular species of bee to venture up into the flower, following the strong pungent scent that these flowers give off. The scent is so strong the bee becomes stupefied & drops backwards onto the lip which guides it to the tip of the column where it get cover in pollen. By now the bee has recovered it senses & flies off to the next flower where it repeats the process all over again, but this time it leaves the pollen from the first flower on the stigma of the second before getting covered with a new batch of pollen, & on it goes… The flowers only last three or four days, but a plant may produce several giving a wonderful display. These plants a best suited to growing in wire baskets that allow the flowers to exit through he side or base of the basket readily. LIGHT Stanhopeas appreciate moderate to strong light most of the year, but it must diffused or the plants lightly shaded to prevent the leaves from burning in the hot summer periods. TEMPERATURE These orchids like temperatures that that don’t go down much below 5 oC in the winter, or higher than about 28 oC in the summer. They must have a day / night as well as a seasonal temperature variation to ensure an even growth pattern & good flowering. Cooler night temperatures seem to promote flowering. WATER These plants should never be allowed to dry out completely, so especially during the warmer month they require regular watering, but this can be reduced considerably during the cooler months. Dry roots will result in the die back of the leaf tips, so if you see this step up your watering frequency. AIR MOVEMENT Constant air movement around these plants is a must, as not only does it keep the air fresh but it also stops fungus settling & causing spotting on the leaves when humidity levels are high. HUMIDITY Should be kept around 75% or higher especially when temperatures are high during the summer months. Frequent misting during the warm days is beneficial to the plant, raising the immediate humidity levels & also helping to reduce the chance of mite and infestation. FERTILISER After flowering the plants can be feed with a weak nitrogen type fertiliser at every third or fourth watering, but as winter approaches, feeding needs to be slowed along with watering. During spring you should switch to a high-phosphorus, bloom-boosting fertiliser such as “Phostrogen” to produce good strong flowers. POTTING Repotting is best carried out after flowering has finished. The media needs to be air yet moist so the best way to set these plants up is in a wire basket that is lined with sphagnum moss. A mixture of medium pre-soaked bark with a little sphagnum mixed can then be packed around the roots. The best flowering displays come from largew clumps so use a large basket when repotting. Plants will only need to be repotted every three years or so. |