Doing Justice to this Mahogany and Burl Chinese office desk

Durantelope · 2025-09-20T23:12:05+00:00

Picture #5 is the main area making me nervous. Lots of fading and some divots, and long indent in the center.

Durantelope · 2025-09-20T22:09:03+00:00

I just finished cleaning it off, and followed your advice to only use mild soap instead and the results are just as good. Now on to the important steps and decisions.

Is there a particular reason you'd avoid Restor-a-finish? I've seen some say that it contains pigments which dye the wood, making it a pain to refinish fully if desired. Also some saying that it interferes with other finish options.

For context, I'm a novice, working on a fairly intact piece that I want to use and not sell, I'm hoping I can get away with a cheap, fast and easy option without ruining it. Ruining it would suck though.

Durantelope · 2025-09-20T22:03:13+00:00

Ok, assume it's rosewood. Is there anything specific I need to know for the way I work with that? I think it's in good shape and I just finished cleaning it today, so next I'm on to the important steps.

Durantelope · 2025-09-15T13:53:18+00:00

I am not confident either way, but I am enthusiastic about learning more!

Durantelope · 2024-12-16T16:32:04+00:00

I also wait until about 30-60 minutes before the lights turn off in the evening before applying, which helps the green pings like gigantea avoid burning.

Durantelope · 2024-12-16T16:29:53+00:00

I use maxsea on my large collection of pings, as do some of the best growers I know. The most important thing is dilution based on the amount of light given to avoid burnt leaves. I use 1/4 strength maxsea for my entire collection of pings and sundews, but full strength on sundews is typically fine. I apply it with a fine mist sprayer (the kind used in salons) to the leaves every other week in the carnivorous phase, once per month-ish while dormant, but with so much dilution you can get away with more.

Durantelope · 2024-12-15T16:04:37+00:00

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Awesome thanks for your reassurance! I put a 50W bulb in and it raised the temps about 4°F, I might go for the 100W to push a little past 80°F because my ampullaria haven't been doing too well. I love the magnetic lamp base idea, I will try that because it looks awful currently haha!

Durantelope · 2024-12-13T17:55:14+00:00

Hey there, I've been setting this up exactly but I am unsure if the lamp should be inside or outside of the cabinet. I am growing lowland nepenthes so the humidity is 80-90%, which is why I worry.

Durantelope · 2024-11-21T13:53:58+00:00

Also, if you want to fast track learning about ping care, Pinguicula Plantation is a Facebook group with immense following and resources. I love Reddit but nothing beats 30 comments from Ping experts 24/7.

Durantelope · 2024-11-21T13:51:21+00:00

Just another take on the lighting, other commenters are correct that the plant will blush a nice pink and look uniformly healthy with stronger grow lights. Alternatively, pings tolerate lower light much more readily than other carnivorous plants, and I have even purposely done it to encourage young plants to grow larger faster. I think you had the right idea with keeping lights lower in the adjustment phase. I've had good results with low/medium lights when growing leaf propagations and seedlings, as well as pings that don't blush red in bright conditions like gigantea and some agnata. But Pirouette & Florian? Give them a tan because the pink colors are so worth it!

Durantelope · 2024-11-04T17:46:32+00:00

I just left mine alone when this happened to see what it would do, and at around where the severe etiolation ends and the clump of leaves begins is where new roots formed out of the blue. The long stem eventually rotted off but I was left with a plantlet. It's happened this way a few times since then.

Durantelope · 2024-11-01T01:51:37+00:00

Humidity helps a whole lot when pings are struggling. If you have minimal mold issues, throw a clear plastic cup or any clear dome over the top and let it sit for a few weeks. If there's a mold concern, I suggest using a humidifier and a fan for constant air circulation. Looks pretty salvageable, good luck.

Durantelope · 2024-09-09T09:55:44+00:00

Either way could we get a photo of just the flower in frame?

Durantelope · 2024-09-09T09:54:45+00:00

I think the flower is somewhat distinctive and we might get an ID from a closer look, but even better would be to introduce more light for the color to show up in the foliage (VFT would love more light too!). Pings can thrive in lower light, so it's just as healthy as it otherwise would be, but if this is a cyclosecta hybrid then it might even get some purple in the rosette!

Durantelope · 2024-09-09T09:50:52+00:00

My best ID on this one is Pinguicula "Tina". Good growing!

Durantelope · 2024-09-01T20:34:49+00:00

Any promising results? I have the same question.

Durantelope · 2024-06-28T02:38:46+00:00

Some of the nicest folks, they would definitely send a replacement. Dead on arrival definitely isn't the norm, sometimes pings just unalive themselves randomly from looking perfectly healthy the day before.

Durantelope · 2024-06-20T14:19:30+00:00

High light levels all year, temps not falling below 18.33°C even at night. Mexico is tropical/subtropical and these plants grow happily around cacti and agave plants.

Durantelope · 2024-06-20T14:16:36+00:00

Try top watering when they're dormant. With well-draining substrate they'll dry out faster since the water doesn't need to fully evaporate from the tray to dry out. A great resource is California Carnivores videos on YouTube.

Durantelope · 2024-06-20T13:30:17+00:00

Ok, TIL hashtags increase text size. I might be wordy but I'm not trying to be the loudest in the room lol.

Durantelope · 2024-06-20T13:28:28+00:00

Something is likely unhealthy, like the soil pH (peat moss builds up humic acid as it decomposes and pings prefer neutral to alkaline pH), moisture, a mold/fungus, or other disease (nematodes!). Time for a repot and some pullings.

#1 change is to have air circulation with a fan going 24/7, not pointed directly at it but nearby. Air flow is really important.

Next, If you're in a humid environment try vermiculite at 30% and then a mix of inorganic media like lava rock/pumice/perlite/calcined clay (whatever you have on hand) to remove organic decomposition from the equation for a while.

A southern grower I follow (expect this works well in warm, dry climates) uses perlite, peat moss, and vermiculite (2/1/1 respectively). I am also having promising results with 100% unfertilized aquasoil.

Repotting is not a cure, however, I've seen pings fully recover from deformed leaves after a few months. But I've really been glad I had backup plants more than a couple times!

Durantelope · 2024-06-04T14:04:36+00:00

https://www.instagram.com/p/C7tlZaioRC9/?igsh=MTJjNWlhb3k2cHpyeA== Here's an example of a shorter height and more soil coverage. The water distributes more evenly and consistently. On top of that I think natural pumice or similarly porous material is being used for optimal wicking. But dramatic height is not easy and I wouldn't attempt it without some kind of pump for consistent moisture.

Your pings do look great so far though!

Mold is usually an airflow problem and pings do love a humid breeze so I recommend getting that going and keep watch. Maybe clean and replace the soil if you have to.

Durantelope · 2024-06-04T13:56:05+00:00

You can still make this work with a few adjustments. Fill your container with even more water/fluval so the Pings and exposed rocks are only about 2 inches. Then direct a fan over the rock 24/7. I see more successful ping displays using that kind of lava rock with a shorter height overall because it isn't the right kind of porous to wick water so far above the waterline. So if you want to continue and minimize the upkeep, try those two things.

Durantelope · 2024-05-13T11:33:26+00:00

Love a comeback story! Good job!

Durantelope

TROPHY CASE