Dend. Spectabile -questions

[Kita]

Hi guys, I bought online Dend. Spectabile and it arrived two days ago. I don't think it bloomed before. Some of the canes have no leaves. Why? What caused that? Will it bloom on those canes? And I lost one leave this morning. It turned yellow. And theres another one that started to yellow. Why?

[Kita]

Will those tiny canes grow bigger? Are they dead?

[78Terp]

I don't expect the 'naked' canes to grow leaves again. My den spectabile has 3 or 4 old canes that are naked too. They still store water for the plant so they are not dead or useless. It is just how some orchids mature.

As for the leaf loss, I cannot say. I have not lost a leaf on mine since it arrived in early December but was actively growing and in spike when it arrived so we may have plants in different stages of the life cycle.

---------- Post Merged at 08:18 AM ----------

And yours, judging from its size, is a relatively young plant.

Mine came at over 2 feet tall.

[coeruleo]

the older canes will store water/strength, so don't remove them. some dendrobiums do bloom on old canes, but not all. i am not certain about this one. shipping an orchid is hard on the plant, so they do often lose a few leaves. i would not use the coconut husk for medium, as i find it retains too much water and dendrobiums usually want to dry out some between waterings. i would remove it form the pot and inspect the roots, and then pot it back into a bark mix. some dendrobiums lose ALL their leaves in winter... i would research this one more and see what their normal cycle is. it might just be normal.

[78Terp]

From IOSPE:

"A spectacular, medium to large sized, hot growing epiphyte in primary rainforests, mangrove swamps and moss forests as well as an occasional lithophyte on rocks from Papua & New Guinea and the Solomon Islands at elevations of 300 to 2000 meters although it is most often from 300 to 500 meters with semiglobose at the base, to 8 noded stems carrying to 5, towards the apex, lanceolate to ovate, coriaceous, obtuse leaves, that blooms in the winter and early spring on an axillary, 8 to 16" [20 to 40 cm] long, few to many flowered [to 20] raceme with minute, oblong bracts that arises from near the apex of leafed mature canes. Fertilizer as well as water should be reduced through the winter months and resumed only after the onset of new growth in the spring."


Sounds like it wants a rest but no mention of dropping its leaves.

[coeruleo]

hmmm... definitely different than the dendros i have so far. although older canes should still eventually lose their leaves. it could be natural, but most likely a side effect of being in a box with no light for several days. i would still inspect the roots and repot. i've lost too many orchids over the years by not acting quickly enough. i did not realize this one was so big of a plant.

[Wade's Orchids]

It looks like a nice, healthy plant to me. These guys like it very well drained. I usually throw in a few stones or pieces of clay shards with the mix to make sure it drains a bit better than my other ones.

[78Terp]

How would a den spectabile do in s/h?

I need to repot and if it is a viable option, it might be the way to go.

[ksriramkumar]

Plant looks healthy to me. congrats on the buy. i recently bought one and I have mounted in a piece of wood.

[Kita]

Thanks guys. I guess I will just leave it the way it is and wait and see what happens