I have so many questions about my new orchid! Help!

I was into phals and dends, but now decided to try something new with the arrival of my new orchid--the miltonidium. So now I'm going to ask some "beginner" questions ...yeah...whatever...

1) How long will it take for the two shoots to become mature enough to bloom? One shoot is 3.5 inch while the other is 4.5 inches tall.

2)Notice that the shoots are thin (1/2 in.) and tubular shaped at the base. How will these change into pbulbs? Will the bottom portion of the shoots become swollen and change into pbulbs, or a new pbulb grow from the tip...I don't know.
3) Please comment if anything looks wrong with the plant.

Please check the photo (I hope it works). Sorry...it looks blurry.
Thanks,

Attached Images

 

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~~~Lily~~~

1. Wow, Im suprised the person who sold you this didnt tell you that miltonidium are notoriously slow growers. A new growth like that cand take upwards of 5 years to bloom. No, not really. depending on your conditions of course you are looking at about 2 years to bloom off of new growths, maybe one. Most of the times it will mature a new growth while it is blooming off a old one, and then sprout a new one, make sense?

2. the new growth will mature and will just naturally fill out and turn into a pbulb.

3. Plant looks great.

Lily, what's the name of the plant? Some Mtdms will bloom twice yearly (our Hawaiian Sunsets always do) and that's off of new growth. Depending, like Forrest said, on your conditions, those shoots could bloom for you within 6 or 7 months.

The pseudobulbs will develop at the base of the new growths, sheathed between a couple sets of those lower leaves.

And the plant sure looks fine from here!

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Louis J. Aszod

Thanks!
The name of the plant is Mtdm. Howard Gerber 'Night Dancers'

What sort of conditions would be right? Should I follow the oncidium culture or miltonia culture? Or is there a separate one for miltonidium?

So it can still bloom off of old growths?

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~~~Lily~~~

Hi Lily,

I have that one, you will love it! I have mine in med fir bark mix and water twice a week. I fertilize weakly/weekly and it's sitting in a southeast window and gets lots of sun. I didn't put it outside because I didn't know if it'd like the heat.

Lisa

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He is risen!

Lily, we grow ours in plenty of light, right along with the other warm growing Oncidiinae, and they do great. I haven't found a need to keep them particularly cool. They will sometimes spike from each side of a pseudobulb but, other than that, will not bloom again from old growths.

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Louis J. Aszod