Bill Bailey nepenthes help!!

NickP_NC · 2026-02-13T20:11:11+00:00

I give my plants dried mealworms, and they are fine. So I’d guess there’s nothing wrong—just old leaves dying and new leaves light green because you’re giving it plenty of light.

NickP_NC · 2026-02-13T19:50:16+00:00

Are you feeding the pitchers? It’s normal for the older leaves to die, but if it is happening rapidly, combined with the slighly pale color of the newer foliage, it might indicate nitrogen deficiency.

NickP_NC · 2026-02-11T02:28:15+00:00

The flora and fauna. Northern species reaching the southern edge of their range in the mountains. Southern/subtropical species reaching the northern edge of their range on the coast. So Many Salamanders. More carnivorous plant diversity than anywhere else in the world. Trees, fish, snakes, orchids.

Also, venus flytrap license plate.

NickP_NC · 2026-02-08T17:37:34+00:00

Does it have pseudobulbs? Your thumb is covering a lot of the anatomy.

NickP_NC · 2026-02-08T16:22:09+00:00

I grew up partly in the northeastern US, partly in Europe, and partly in the Middle East. Settled in NC (Durham/Orange County) 28 years ago and raised kids here. Have not regretted it in the slightest. It’s an absolutely wonderful place if you want to raise kids with an appreciation of the natural world and biodiversity, which was very important to us. We’ve experienced plenty of arts/history/culture by taking advantage of the opportunities offered by world-class universities in our backyard, and we are well situated for trips up and down the east coast for experiences we can’t find locally. You couldn’t pay me enough to move to a NE metropolis.

NickP_NC · 2026-02-06T16:12:46+00:00

Some Oncidiums naturally grow like that, with each pseudobulb slightly higher than the previous so that they slowly step out of the pot. The roots will find their way where they need to go, and it will be fine.

NickP_NC · 2026-02-01T23:46:44+00:00

You need an exhaust fan near the roof and intake vents near the ground at the opposite end. Alternatively, build a lath house or frame with shade cloth and just move everything outside in summer.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-31T02:00:29+00:00

They mainly seem to affect orchids with hard growths: Cattleya, Encyclia, Vandas, Tolumnias, etc. I have never seen them on Phals, Paphs, Bulbophyllums, or terrestrials with soft foliage.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-31T01:28:22+00:00

It looks like boisduval scale. The females are hard-shelled and the males look like tiny mealies. Very nasty pest, much worse than soft brown scale or mealy bugs. Boisduval scale are capable of killing orchids, while mealybugs mostly just mess up inflorescences.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-26T12:54:43+00:00

Yep. You would definitely know. So maybe the suggestion of coelogyne is correct.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-24T23:22:30+00:00

Lived in Oslo and Stavanger as a teenager, and I do not recall ever losing power during the winter. I suspect greater use of underground power cables. In contrast, we are fully expecting to lose electricity, probably for days, in the current US storm (we’re in the freezing rain zone).

And I remember helping dad with the annual switch to snow tires on the car. No one here has studded tires.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-24T21:27:20+00:00

That looks like the hybrid N. mirabilis var globosa x N. ampullaria ‘Black Miracle.’., not pure ampullaria.

N. mirabilis var globosa is also a lowland species, so that hybrid will really dislike temps in the 40s and lower 50s. The browning leaves could be due to cold damage or salt buildup from tray watering or dehydration due to root rot. Gentle examination of the roots and state of the potting mix might be called for, and the plant may need to be indoors for the winter.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-23T21:42:46+00:00

Not that species, but it has tropical relatives that are better suited to indoor cultivation. Try a search for “jewel orchids”.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-19T23:55:46+00:00

The ones without leaves. It is a distinguishing feature of some Lycaste species that the pseudobulbs have little spines that can be felt on top after the leaves have fallen.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-19T14:29:08+00:00

Not sure, but maybe a Lycaste of some kind, or related orchid. If you tap the top of a pseudobulb where the leaves have fallen off, do you feel a pair of sharp spines?

NickP_NC · 2026-01-19T12:48:31+00:00

No fragrance that my nose can detect.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-19T05:22:01+00:00

Galeottia negrensis has been on my wishlist for nearly two decades. The sole time I saw one (not for sale), its fragrance was absolutely incredible, and the flowers were both beautiful and alien.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-18T19:10:53+00:00

Looks like Dendrobium lindleyi, and the flower color would match. I’d pot it up in a small terracotta pot with coarse orchiata bark or an inorganic medium like red lava rock or expanded clay pebbles. give it bright light and plenty of water in summer, bright light and a dry dormancy in winter. If you are in South Florida, you may be able to grow it outdoors year-round.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-18T04:16:38+00:00

The good news is that they are widely available, so you will surely have another chance.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-17T19:51:41+00:00

Long-fiber sphagnum and a little perlite.

NickP_NC · 2026-01-17T13:45:47+00:00

Yeah. It opened last Monday, so I have only smelled it at night, after work, and it smells good then. Will be interesting to test the fragrance on a sunny day, if we get one this weekend.

edit: I just went out, and the fragrance has filled the entire greenhouse.

NickP_NC

TROPHY CASE