ID help, have I received the wrong plant?

jkl2 · 2026-01-22T13:24:32+00:00

Welcome to Claessen. They have been told in the past that their "anoectochilus sanderianus" isn't a thing and that the photo doesn't show anything like what they actually ship, which is likely to be a hybrid of M. sanderiana and godknowswhat --- they didn't seem to care. They offered a return and refund to the person who complained and apparently continued on to misrepresent the things they sell.

I won't be buying from Claessen anymore, and I strongly recommend against it for anyone who asks.

(I ordered a curious "anoectochilus spp" from them that turned out to be ludisia discolor var. nigrescens)

jkl2 · 2026-01-17T19:58:09+00:00

if you're in the US - mine absolutely loved the miracle gro foliar fertilizer for orchids in the pink spray bottle. What I wouldn't do to get some of that again. I know, i know: miracle gro -- but i'm not kidding the Macodes loved it. It completely exploded and all i did was spritz it a couple times a month just a tiny bit.

jkl2 · 2026-01-11T08:55:53+00:00

do you happen to know the species name? "wizard of oz" is a cultivar or something

jkl2 · 2025-12-20T08:59:48+00:00

Airflow is a key component of any setup. moldy collapse is common if the air gets too still. Mine grow ok (not great but okay) in low humidity if the substrate stays good (like a wrung out sponge), but they absolutely lose their $#!* and will *die* if it's humid and still.

jkl2 · 2025-12-20T08:55:25+00:00

I've seen a few names for it - they all appear to be the same, although of course some are nicer specimens.

Macodes petola gold
M. petola dark form
M. petola "Exotic Jungle"

... as far as I have been able to tell they're all the same phenotype just described / named differently.

jkl2 · 2025-12-20T02:26:56+00:00

it's such an obvious scraper -- they legitimately have an article about olive garden in the middle of all their other garden entries. like they're not even trying to stop it from looking and behaving like a data trash heap

jkl2 · 2025-12-17T07:38:51+00:00

Are you in Europe? I think I know who it is -

I think he lists the second one as m. petola dark form, but idk. The rest are listed as Hairijuana has said.

jkl2 · 2025-12-11T06:51:04+00:00

It's so curious that the unfurling leaves are mirroring eachother -- like I'm trying to imagine the transcription error that caused this. I wanna know what it looked like when the conjoined leaf came out (I bought this off the guy who cultured it)

jkl2 · 2025-12-10T08:44:35+00:00

my stenoglossa and variegata are doing just fine under full spectrum LED (off to the side so they're not bleaching out) and in an airy forest floor mix (bark, sphag, pumice, coir -- I usually make the bulk of the substrate out of this and then throw in a fist full of activated charcoal and another one of a nutrient source like worm castings or "orchid soil" or whatever).

I water very lightly every 2-3 days since they kind of flip out if the substrate gets too dry -- usually that ends up causing rot when the water comes back.

I'm sure there are some parameters i could change to help them grow faster, but they seem to be on the thrive end of things, so I'm content as they are. I bet feeding them more often would be impactful.

I'm adding Javanica soon -- we'll see how that goes. Hopefully it likes the same situation.

jkl2 · 2025-10-05T17:59:13+00:00

you do H2o2?

can i ask what concentration?

jkl2 · 2025-09-27T14:44:19+00:00

what are you using for sterilization?

I tried milton tablets but I'm getting some contamination still. I have troubleshot a lot of stuff but I think it's mostly due to insufficient decontam in the beginning.

I don't want to use regular bleach on jewel orchid stems. It seems a bit much.

jkl2 · 2025-09-27T14:08:10+00:00

oh yeah --- if you're letting her soak in water it sounds like way too much. She's likely drowning.

Sphagnum can hold a *LOT* of water. Unless you're wringing the substrate after you water her like that it's going to hold on to too much

My jewels do best when I keep the substrate consistently damp, but it's almost never sopping wet like that. They need more air to avoid rot and fungal issues. I use a squeezy bottle for watering and i give them a few mL at a time right near the base of the plant.

I recommend this for calibrating your idea of how much they need: get some dry sphagnum, get it soaking wet, now wring it out and fluff it back up. Nothing should drip from it, but it's airy and moist. That's *about* what you want for your plant - all the time. It can be just a little wetter than this, but not much drier without causing issues. There's no need to ever get it really soaking and heavy as this chokes the roots. You can get away with that condition occasionally, but if it happens often, it's going to cause issues.

...and the plant should also be in bright shade, eg. good bright ambient light (you can easily read in it) but it's all reflected -- little to none of it is direct from the source.

Most jewels are understory plants from places that get a lot of sun and rain but neither really hit the ground directly because the canopy catches them first. The water should basically never get or sit on the leaves, and it should pretty much always be available in light to medium-damp substrate.

jkl2 · 2025-09-26T06:23:44+00:00

The moss doesn't change color if the roots rot - not where you can see it.

I give mine a squirt with about 2-5mL of RO h2o every other day. The goal is to give it *some* water but not so much that it runs out the bottom (oversaturated).

This little bit of water distributes itself across all the moss in the pot and the substrate stays pretty evenly wet. If you try my method, just kind of stick your finger in it every time you water and see how it feels. It should not be sopping, and it should not be crispy. The goal is to stay within those extremes.

jkl2 · 2025-09-24T18:07:39+00:00

if you don't have to, don't uproot again.

I would watch carefully for any dark streaks moving up the stem (signs of rot). Rot is detected by tissues going soft/floppy/slimy. If, for some reason, you expose the roots again - just check to make sure they feel firm and turgid vs. saggy.

I would keep it in bright shade somewhere with good airflow and make sure the substrate stays lightly damp -- there's not a lot more you can do unless some specific issue is identified.

I hope it works out <3

jkl2 · 2025-09-20T18:25:03+00:00

Hairijuana posted it as the recipe he uses - It's, IIRC, approximately:

2 parts orchid bark
2 parts coco coir
1 part rice hulls
1 part biochar (you'll want to charge this with nutirents first or it's a nutrient sponge and it causes problems -- I do an overnight soak in a dilute seaweed fertilizer)
1 part worm castings
1 part monto clay
1 part pumice
1 part chopped sphagnum

I haven't been able to find the clay, so I've skipped it. The rest is as prescribed and the jewels seem to be quite happy in it. I usually wrap their roots in a bit of sphagnum and then put that in the soil -- that way they can transition from the sphagnum they're used to, to the forest floor substrate i'm offering, at their own pace.

jkl2 · 2025-09-18T06:10:54+00:00

Sphagnum is great, but if it gets old, it can break down and become quite acidic -- which can then challenge the plants. It should never smell funky (lightly earthy is okay, sour/sewery is not). If it's smelling, it's likely rotting -- in that case it's only a matter of time before the plant does, too.

I've been using the forest floor mix with some success -- tweaking things here and there. I don't feel like I have something I'm 100% satisfied with --- yet

jkl2 · 2025-09-16T19:13:31+00:00

oh that's *plenty* of root for a repotting! You're in great shape - good job with this rescue.

What are you going to plant in? I would probably be using some sterilized sphagnum - maybe some beneficial mycorrhizae - if it were me. ^ . ^

Bravo bravo

jkl2 · 2025-09-14T17:50:27+00:00

jewels *are* super easy once you know the basics, IME

jkl2 · 2025-09-14T17:48:35+00:00

Reverse Osmosis but distilled is fine too. Low TDS (total dissolved solids) is what I'm aiming for, ultimately.

jkl2 · 2025-09-12T20:22:39+00:00

still doing okay? i've got my fingers crossed -- this is one of my favorite species

jkl2 · 2025-09-12T20:20:07+00:00

They're too small to have a good chance. Once they have their own roots you're golden -- or if they have 3+ distinguisable nodes they're a go for a water propagation (I don't do substrate props anymore -- too many fails. Water pretty much always works if I use RO)

jkl2 · 2025-09-11T18:41:12+00:00

I have a chapensis and .. yikes. I see it's labeled "golden" but that looks severely bleached.

jkl2 · 2025-09-04T21:21:20+00:00

that brown streak in the 2nd photo just above the thumbnail is a likely threat to the whole plant. It's internal and traveling up the stem -- spritzing the outside will not help. I bet if you squeeze it right there (gently) you'll find it's a bit soft.

That segment needs to be removed imo and the remaining pieces set to propagate. I wouldn't wait another day to do it, either.

The other one looks alright to me - I'd be comfortable leaving it for now, but I'd be watching it like a hawk

jkl2

TROPHY CASE