Orchid identification.

[David Farber]

I bought this at Costco. The flower had already bloomed but was well beyond
its prime. It's many months later and the plant looks very healthy. Any idea
what kind it is?

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/farberbear/Orchid/orchid.html

Thanks for your reply.
--
David Farber
L.A., CA

[K Barrett]

Its an oncidium of some sort. Yes, you are doing a nice job with it.
Congrats!

K Barrett

[David Farber]

Hi K.

Thanks for the id. Can you tell from the close up how much longer it will be
until the flowers bloom?

[Steve]

Hi David,
It looks to me like you should have flowers in a week or two. Possibly
longer. When it does bloom, return here with a link to a picture of it.
Then we can get a more accurate idea of whether it's a pure Oncidium or
a hybrid with something else. My first thought was that the pseudobulbs
were a little tall for a pure Oncidium, but there are LOTS of different
Oncidium species and hybrids. The flowers will probably tell that story.

Steve

[David Farber]

Hi Steve,

Thanks for your analysis. I'll post pics of the blooms when they arrive.

[K Barrett]

Steve is right in saying its probably a hybrid of some sort. Costco
wouldn't sell a plain species. You are doing well with yours, growing a
nicely branched inflorescence. The flowers look like they'll have some
sort of tan or reddish brown to them. The flowers will probably open in
about a week. They may start small then expand over a week's time,
getting larger.

Since you are in LA I'll encourage you to try Norman's Orchids (I think
their website is orchids.com) to test if you can resist the orchid bug,
*G*! Sorry I can't recall what city they are in, so its probably miles
from where you are, but at least you can see some pretty orchid pictures.

K Barrett

[K Barrett]

OOps, I looked at the pic again and it will be a few weeks before the
buds open.

K

[David Farber]

There are two Norman's locations in L.A. One is in Montclair and there is a
sister store in the Flower District of downtown Los Angeles called, "Orchid
Affair." The downtown store has one set of business hours for wholesalers
and another set for regular people. It's on my to do list.

The blooms opened up yesterday. So what do the experts say?
http://members.dslextreme.com/users/farberbear/Orchid/orchid.html

Thanks for your reply.

[K Barrett]

David Farber wrote:
>
> There are two Norman's locations in L.A. One is in Montclair and there is a
> sister store in the Flower District of downtown Los Angeles called, "Orchid
> Affair." The downtown store has one set of business hours for wholesalers
> and another set for regular people. It's on my to do list.
>
> The blooms opened up yesterday. So what do the experts say?
> http://members.dslextreme.com/users/farberbear/Orchid/orchid.html
>
> Thanks for your reply.

Yoiks, it could be anything. Yellow oncidiums are pretty universal.
Sorry to be of no help.

K Barrett

[Steve]

Well, a month ago, I said the pseudobulbs looked too elongated to be
pure Oncidium. Now that I see the flowers, I don't see anything there
but Oncidium. It's not exactly like any one I remember seeing in person.
I can't even tell you if it's a species or a hybrid.

Steve

[David Farber]

Is there a word in the orchid world which is equivalent to the word, "mutt,"
in the dog world?

Thanks for your reply.
--
David Farber

David Farber's Service Center
L.A., CA

[Steve]

> in the dog world?............

Not exactly. A mutt would be a mixture of breeds, not a pure bred.
In the orchid world, we delight in making all sorts of hybrids, in an
attempt to improve on nature. I have to admit that many hybrid attempts
are poorly planned and turn out to be "dogs".
I've heard people who are avid species collectors refer to all hybrid
orchids as mutts.

Steve

[Wendy7]

It looks just like Oncidium Gower Ramsey to me, but we can't just name it
so.
Cheers Wendy

"David Farber" <farberbe...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:4b0ef2f7$0$28800$bd46...@news.dslextreme.com...

[David Farber]

> "David Farber" <farberbe...@aol.com> wrote in message
> news:4b0ef2f7$0$28800$bd46...@news.dslextreme.com...
>> I bought this at Costco. The flower had already bloomed but was well
>> beyond its prime. It's many months later and the plant looks very
>> healthy. Any idea what kind it is?
>>
>> http://members.dslextreme.com/users/farberbear/Orchid/orchid.html
>>
>> Thanks for your reply.
>> --
>> David Farber
>> L.A., CA

Wendy7 wrote:
> It looks just like Oncidium Gower Ramsey to me, but we can't just
> name it so.
> Cheers Wendy
>

I looked up the picture of the Oncidium Gower Ramsey and it looks like a
very close match to me.

[K Barrett]

David Farber wrote:
>
> Is there a word in the orchid world which is equivalent to the word, "mutt,"
> in the dog world?
>
> Thanks for your reply.

We call them nonamis (singular nonami) for 'no name'. Everyone knows
that somehow either the tag was lost, it came to you without a name, or
the vendor never had a name in the first place.

K Barrett

[Munir]

> There are two Norman's locations in L.A. One is in Montclair and there is a
> sister store in the Flower District of downtown Los Angeles called, "Orchid
> Affair." The downtown store has one set of business hours for wholesalers
> and another set for regular people. It's on my to do list.

I'll second the idea of visiting Norman's. The owner gave me a tour of
their greenhouses in Montclair and it was jaw-dropping. Try to visit
during one of their open houses and you'll get attractive discounts
and see interesting presentation. You can also browse their collection
on-line at http://www.orchids.com/

> The blooms opened up yesterday. So what do the experts say?http://members.dslextreme.com/users/farberbear/Orchid/orchid.html

It seems clear that your Costco orchid is an oncidium hybrid. Oncidium
species can be combined with others to create easier-to-grow plants
that bloom multiple times per year. From my identification book, the
blooms in your photograph appear to be those of the hybrid called
'Oncidium Gower Ramsey'. It is a cross between Goldiana and Guinea
Gold.

From the Complete Guide to Orchids by Ortho Books, p. 167:

"This grex makes an excellent orchid for beginners. It is easy to grow
on a bright windowsill, forgiving of imperfect culture, and a prolific
bloomer. Even on a young plant, its 1/2-inch-wide, chrome yellow
flowers appear in profusion on tall, branching spikes to resemble
cheery dancing ladies in full, brightly colored skirts. A widely sold
hybrid, it will grace its growing area with glowing inflorescences
twice each year...."

Hope that helps,

Munir

[David Farber]

Hi Munir,

Thanks, that does help quite a bit!