SVO Vacation Haul!
I went on a trip away for the weekend with my boyfriend to San Diego! We've been planning it for a little while and since my orchid mania is well-known, we stopped by the famous Sunset Valley Orchids in Vista! I've bought from SVO before at the orchid expo back in February and both were lovely and at decent prices. This time I went to the actual nursery and it was beautiful!!!
Here I was thinking that Norman's Orchids in Montclair was big but this place was something else! I also happened to run into my orchid hobbyist friend who has his plants there which was such an unexpected and awesome surprise. We had a great time talking about the orchids and I ended up buying three from my friend, Peter, and three from SVO. Carlos was so sweet as we walked up and down the aisles looking at the breeding rooms, seedling rooms, and the plants that were for sale.
Dendrobium Australian Artist
This adorable little guy is an Australian dendrobium, which the nursery is rather famous for. This particular hybrid stays compact and came in flower which was the reason I picked this one in particular. Kiwi attracted me with these small green petals contrasting with a dark magenta patterned lip hinted with yellows. The blooms are still opening and if they don't blast, it will be exciting to see what happens with the color as the flowers age.
During the repotting, I noticed the smaller two seedling bulbs had become detached at some point from the other three larger mature canes, one of which is in bud. I'm curious to see if the smaller bulbs have enough energy in them to put out a new growth. I'll have to wait and see!
Sarcochilus (Kulnara Dazzel 'Deep Velvet' x Kulnara Drive '4 Black')
This is a new species to me and Carlos was happy to answer all of the questions I peppered him with about these tiny little orchids. These monopodial plants are similar to phalaenopsis in care but they like to stay wetter. They grow fans which mature and put out fans of its own as the orchid matures getting bushy, rather than tall. This orchid is so lovely with the bright green petals and short flower spikes. They are floriferous overall and possibly, but unlikely, fragrant.
The deep red color and rich texture of the petals was what caught my eye when I came across Velvet among the trays of sarcochilus. When I repotted her, I was shocked to find that what I thought was a smaller growth is actually a whole separate plant! They probably got paired together accidentally during the potting process. I left the two together to support each other as the smaller plant's roots were much less developed than the larger one. I'm excited to watch this plant mature and get bushy, especially since I bought a second sarcochilus to compare its growth to!
Sarcochilus (Kulnara Need '7 Spikes' x Kulnara Euphoria 'Underlay')
The pale yellow against the white background made this flower so endearing to me. Creme has such a fun wild spotted pattern on her flowers that call out to me yet they are understated. Her fan is much larger than Velvet's and she has a small growth forming which I suspect is a secondary flower spike. I'm excited to watch these two plants acclimated to the semi-hydro process and I have hopes that they will do well. These plants love water and prefer to stay moist rather than dry out since they do not have an canes or bulbs to store energy. The upgrade from drier bark medium will hopefully only help, not hurt, these orchids and they will adapt swiftly/
Epc. Golden Sunburst 'Exotic Orchids'
This was the first pick that Peter made for me. These bright, yellow flowers are decadent with their amazing sweet honey fragrance. This orchid can fill up a car or room with that fragrance with ease and those showstopping blooms are just amazing. She's a pretty big orchid overall but since the flower spikes aren't too tall, I was happy to take her.
This big girl is matured with three flowers spikes in bloom each carrying about 6-7 flowers and buds.
I wasn't sure about repotting her but since my cattleyas are all doing so well, I decided to go for it. Her roots system is extensive and very healthy though on the verge of being pot bound. By the time I cleared the old media away, her roots were looking a little worse for wear despite my trying to be as gentle as possible. The rooms were too much to fit into even my largest pot so I decided to divide the orchid in two. The three more newly matured bulbs which are larger and in bloom were put together and the five, smaller seedling bulbs were put into a seperate pot. Daffodil and Narcissa will be just fine I think and will hopefully start putting out new growths soon!
Sophrolaelia Minipet
I knew I wanted to pick up another mini cattleya from this nursery so Peter told me about the Sl. Minipet! She is a tiny orchid with comparatively large blooms that are a dazzling coral red color. They are fragrant and gorgeous! He explained these are the much easier hybrid version of the sophronitis orchid (miniature cattleya species).
Peter picked this cutie out which has two new growths, one of which is budding! My fingers are crossed it doesn't blast! I eagerly await for this beauty and if she reacts like my other cattleyas, Sophie will be a healthy, happy orchid in no time!
Neofinetia falcata 'Kouhou'
I had no idea that neofinetia falcatas came in a yellow color so when I saw these guys I knew I needed to have one! I was only supposed to pick up five new orchids total but this beauty was an exception. She's so tiny, that's my excuse. Canary is a healthy plant with plenty of roots and three fans. Her flowers are nearly spent though I do catch a sweet fragrance when I get close. I put her next to Dove, my other Neo and I hope she takes off and does as well as she is.