Crown of Thorns?

[sand_tiger86]

This may seem like an odd post, but it's for anyone with experience in growing orchids and Crown of Thorns (euphorbia miili). I have a Crown of Thorns that completely stalled at my old house and did nothing, but at my new place it loves the western exposure and has bloomed nonstop since October. I don't know a lot about them, but I've read almost unanimously that they need high-light in order to bloom profusely. With that in mind, is my light high enough for Cattleyas and other high-light orchids? There's not a lot of information on how many foot candles a Crown of Thorns needs to bloom, just they need almost direct light to do it well.

[wetfeet101b]

My mother in law's garden has several varieties of those.
I refuse to keep one in my own garden as I have a very curious 2 year old who is still learning how to apply brakes when running.

She grows them as "desert succulents". So basically all the unfiltered sun they can get, and heavy drenching once a week in fast draining potting mix.

Western afternoon exposure would be easily handled by the Crown of Thorns.

Although a western exposure would provide enough light energy for cattleyas, it is also a very hot kind of light so you will need to manage shading and temperatures accordingly.
Even indoors, you can sunburn cattleyas in a western exposure. It is not the brightness of the light that is the issue, but the amount of heat energy hammering the plants at that angle.

[sand_tiger86]

Thank you! I always have a fan blowing on my orchids so the heat doesn't build too much. So if I have a profusely blooming Crown of Thorns plant, you would agree that the light would seem strong enough to bloom Cattleyas...correct?

[wetfeet101b]

Thank you! I always have a fan blowing on my orchids so the heat doesn't build too much. So if I have a profusely blooming Crown of Thorns plant, you would agree that the light would seem strong enough to bloom Cattleyas...correct?

I would think so.