Keeping warm inside with the plants

We've braved a week of bone-breaking cold and the car only failed to start once! I left it unplugged for just 20 minutes at -34 Celsius and it punished me for being so cruel. The coldest it got (not factoring in the windchill) was -34 Celsius. That's enough to persuade me to buy some heavy boots at the local trading post this week. My toes will thank me.

Resident-lawnmower-man shovels snow off the decks:

You have to live somewhere cold to understand why the Cree name for January is "Moon of the Tree Exploding Month". I haven't seen the trees explode myself, but I wouldn't doubt it if someone told me they saw an exploding tree in this severe cold. My own descriptive name for this month might be "Moon of the nostrils freezing together".

Here is my phalenopsis Brother Mirage "Brother" orchid in (almost) full bloom:
Seedlings in humidity dome:

I have limited myself to a few perennials for now, including Euphorbia myrsinites, whose seed packet made it sound like only sorcerers and advanced horticulturalists could make this seed germinate. It sounded like a good challenge for January, when I am over-eager to plant things. Strangely, they germinated easily in warm conditions. I also am growing some Gentiana acaulis and Arabis blepharophylla Spring Charm.

Orchid and Paperwhite Blooms

The houseplants are putting on a show now and the Phalenopsis (orchid) should be in full bloom for Christmas. The orchid has taken two years to re-bloom. It has a main flower spike with two small spikes branching off the main one. All have several buds on them. I bought an support stake for the flower spike from Lee Valley tools. I hope it comes soon and works well for this plant.

Here is the first bud open on Phal. Brother Mirage "Brother". This is a non-fragrant type of orchid, but the pretty flowers are enough to bring it great admiration.


Here is my collection of houseplants, huddled together in front of my big livingroom window. The paperwhites are in bloom on the left and the orchid and African violet are blooming on the right. I have three other orchids on the same table (which are not blooming anytime soon). I have decided that the paperwhites STINK. Yes, they are advertised as fragrant, but it is not a fragrance which I have any appreciation for. Anybody else agree with me here?

Orchids in Action

While my dendrobiums grow, bloom, and multiply faster than I can keep up with, I have waited patiently for my large phalaenopsis (moth orchid) to bloom. My largest one (Phal. Brother Mirage "Brother") has many aerial roots and lots of dark green healthy foliage. It sits inside a bright window with sheer curtains shielding it from direct sunlight.

This long-awaited flower spike is very exciting!

I'm not certain how to best treat this orchid now, but I'm following the tricks I learned from my Dendrobium nobile: give them little water and no fertilizer until the flower buds are definitely set, and then water and use a high phosphorus orchid fertilizer. The Dendrobium nobile would turn its little buds into new plants (keikis) instead of flowers if watered/fertilizer too soon.

A phalaenopsis reblooming from a spent spike: this one was purchased for us as a gift and we watched it bloom from May till late August. As recommended, I cut it off just above the uppermost green node (watch that you don't confuse the nodes for the marks left on the spike from where the dead flowers fell off -- you want to cut below these). You can see the beginnings of a new flower spike growing from this node.