PO Box 24425 Fort Lauderdale, FL 33307 US
section Dendrobium - the "soft cane" and nobile types
Cultural Information
SPECIES:
There are several ways to grow any orchid. Some work better than others. Just because your plant is growing and sometimes produces some flowers does not mean that it is being grown in the most optimum conditions. In growing any new species, I try to find out as much information as I possibly can about it first. A big contributing factor usually is, where does the plant come from? So find out which country, geographical area, and climactic conditions in which it grows. You can find out rainfall and seasonal information on local websites for those areas. What a wonderful the computer age has given us.
I normally separate how I grow these plants into 2 main divisions.
First one, if the older, mature canes are growing somewhat upright; and secondly, the older, mature canes are more, or completely pendulous. These second grouping is what gives this group it's other name, the "soft cane" group.
Potting or Mounting: This is all a bunch of variables. If you live where you can mount plants onto trees outside, then it definitely can be done. Just remember though, if you live in an area where it is pretty arid, you will have to increase humidity and make sure that you water plants often enough during the growing season. For potting, you want pots on the smaller size. I find that plastic pots are much better than clay pots as they help retain moisture better than clay. As a medium, I use sphagnum moss, or, rarely for drier loving plants, Aliflor/Hydroton/leca mixed with sphagnum moss. The main thing to remember is to keep each plant into a pot which might seem small for its size. During the growing season, this plant will usually dry the sphagnum moss within a day or two after watering.
Light: First type, upright canes, I give these plants as much possible light that I can. Most of which I have growing in FULL south Florida sun as possible (all day full sun). Now, that being said, if you can not give them full sun all day long, and all year long, it is best to give them a minimum of 5 to 6 hours of direct sun per day. Morning or afternoon sun is fine. Full sun does not mean indoors in front of a south facing window. Indoor full sun is the equivalent to outdoor full shade, so with indoor growing, you may want to supplement with supplemental lighting.
Second type, pendulous canes, during the first few months of growing, these plants get dappled sun, or very early morning direct sun and late afternoon direct sun, with no midday direct sun. Then towards the end of the growing season, early to mid autumn, drastically increase to all day full sun (these plants grow on deciduous trees, so light increases as leaves fall off of the trees.
Water: The amount of water will depend upon the location from which the plant originated. I have a very general rule, grow like you would a Catasetum or Cycnoches. Now, for those who don't know what that means, I keep them dry during the winter dormancy period. Only giving water on a very brief occasion, a brief "passing by" of water maybe once a month, or if I see a cane start to drastically starting to shrivel.
Section Description
(Pictured above - Dendrobium nobile, the species, not a hybrid)
This section is the type section for the entire genus in which Dendrobium moniliforme is considered the type species. Most of the plants of this section are epiphytes or lithophytes that are found in low to moderate elevations in areas ranging from India through southeast Asia which have very distinct dry seasons and some in cooler elevations.
The plants often have swollen club-shaped to clavate pseudobulbs, or thin pendulous pseudobulbs, with leaves along the upper two-thirds. Pseudobulbs are mostly deciduous, these leaves will often fall off after a year, some two years. These bare canes will produce their flowers, usually one to three, at the nodes along the canes primarily during the dry season. Flowers form on a short inflorescence, sometimes moderate in length, arising from the apical part of the pseudobulb, carrying relatively large and showy flowers containing an entire lip with a short mentum . Flowers are often fragrant, which have a wide variety of comparable fragrances ranging from raspberry, honey, rhubarb, citrus, etc. Many of the "nobile type" hybrids contain a smell similar to honey, which is strongest usually mid-day or during warmer periods.
Generally, these species require a cool, dry rest, r cool, or dry rest, with drastically increased light or sun in order to flower well.
These dendrobiums are often referred to as "soft cane" species and many are very popular in cultivation.
Some more common species within this section: albosanguineum, amoenum, anosmum, aphrodite, aphyllum, atavus, bensoniae, candidum, chrysanthum, crepidatum, crystallinum, falconeri , findlayanum, friedericksianum, gratiosissimum, heterocarpum, hookerianum, lasioglossum, leptocladum, linawianum, lituiflorum, loddigesii, maccarthiae, macrostachyum, moniliforme, nobile, ochreatum, okinawense, parishii, pierardii (aphyllum), pendulum, polyanthum, primulinum, regium, signatum, tetrachromum, tortile, transparens.