How to grow Masdevallia orchids

[@loribadgero1035]

Greetings from Texas, USA. I so appreciate your videos, Matthew. Always such great content!😊🤗💯👍🪴

[@helloplantlovers]

Thank you!

[@krisbicton7777]

Thanks Matthew another great video. I have a small collection, they are healthy plants but i can never get them to bloom. Anyway i haven't given up hope yet. I will try some of your tips. Thank you again.

[@helloplantlovers]

Thanks for watching!

[@stephdang2804]

Another great video. Good info Matthew. Thank you. I would love to own masdevillas knowing they prefer a cooler Clime I'm hesitant to get one as my area can get quite hot and dry. Listening to Dan I'm tempted again🤔🥰...

[@helloplantlovers]

It's all relative! Try one and see - Thanks for watching!

[@wandashaw3551]

Your plant is STUNNING! Wish I had the environment to grow them.

[@helloplantlovers]

Thank you! And thanks for watching!

[@sandychan7406]

Thank you Matthew, good timing as I just bought a few from orchid show 🎉

[@helloplantlovers]

Good luck with them! Thanks for watching!

[@debbiethomas3687]

Masdevallia glandulosa is gorgeously scented. Thanks for a very interesting video. Mine (Southern half of the UK) spend the summer outdoors on the north side of the house, but winter in the greenhouse. They probably don't get enough light because I have a double layer of bubblewrap insulating the roof and sides (we have been down to -15C here, although that's rare, but down to -5C is not unusual), so I try to put them high up and those near the apex flower better than those lower down. My greenhouse is too small to have more than half a dozen plants near the top though, so my sarcs flower but not as well as I'd like.

[@helloplantlovers]

Thanks for watching! Nearly Sarcochilus time here!

[@necrovive]

aww that's gorgeous, and yours clump nice and neat, to bad i can only accommodate with orchids that does well with heat 😆😆

[@helloplantlovers]

Thanks for watching!

[@joannah.3684]

Wonderful as always ❤️💎🍃Greetings from Poland 👋🏻

[@helloplantlovers]

Thanks for watching!

[@EveGriffin-ny2os]

Perfect timing for this video. I have started growing mine inside in a south facing window as Dan mentioned. Did he mean as in all year? ( Australia) Last year they broke out in spots ! Like measles after a few hot days. I figure that they were too dry & therefore stressed do you think? Thanks for sharing your knowledge

[@helloplantlovers]

They could also have had direct light which would have damaged the leaves. Heat will stress them though.

[@lisascenic]

Thank you for another fascinating video. I struggle with these orchids because I live in such a dry climate here in my part of the San Francisco Bay Area. The plants grow reasonably well, but have never flowered for me. From what you’ve said, I suspect the slugs are eating the buds before I have time to intervene.

[@helloplantlovers]

I have on/off years...depends what's going on! Thanks for watching!

[@Preet_Persis]

Beautiful ❤

[@helloplantlovers]

Thanks for watching!

[@LizE2654]

Interesting video!

[@LaplaceDaemon]

Thanks for the video! This one was more a bit more about the subsection coccinea that among its ~17 species includes coccinea, veitchiana, ignea and probably at least one of the parents of those hybrids. I personally don’t like that section because i only grow fragrant orchids and none of them are as far as i know. There are fragrant Masdevallia among the other 600 species, they don’t have the same bright and monochrome colored flowers though (probably because they aren’t pollinated by hummingbirds) and a lot of them grow much further down the mountain than subs. Coccinea which is all 2000m+. Since you asked for a fragrant species here are some roughly ordered from hot->cold: Nicaraguae(0-600m), mejiana, rex, striatella, herredurae, angulata, venzuelana, curtipes, laucheana, glandulosa, garciae, strobelii, vidua, lamprotyria, agaster, ludibunda, estradea, corniculata, caudata ,datura, cyclotega(3000-3500m)

[@helloplantlovers]

Oh interesting! Thank you - I' knew there were sure to be some.

[@daniellecaron3025]

Exquisite

[@helloplantlovers]

Thanks for watching!

[@tomfurmby88]

I know people say people need to adapt care guides to suit their conditions and what might work for some might not work for others but if you ask me, many just do things wrong and it might happen to work for them, doesn't mean it's ever the right way to do things. So yes what might work for some might not work for others. In fact many times it won't because orchid growers are notorious for picking up myths and then never budging on that opinion, even if it is completely wrong. Their logic would be "it works for me" but I would question this in many instances. Most of the time it works till it doesn't. And lets face it it can take months, even years to figure out orchids whereas other plants are much easier, you fertilize a tomato too weakly and it will start dropping leaves within a week. With orchids it is much harder to figure out how to fertilize plants. The truth is though, it's actually very similar between aroids, orchids, nepanthes, monsters, vegetables, ornamental plants etc. Once one ha figured out how to growother plants, figuring ot orchids is easier. But figuring out orchids with no previous plant experience takes much much longer and it is very easy to come to wrong conclusions. Like 99% of plant problems are pest related. I swear it's 99%. Maybe that just applies to my growing conditions though heehee. Yet 99% of times people will not treat or suspect pests initially, they will always suspect fungus instead. When it is rarely fungus in well ventilated growing environments and well draining media which most do use. Same with what causes orchids to flower. They are seasonal plants and follow the seasonal changes of the sun. They are not like tulips which have evolved to respond to temperature changes because they are buried under the ground and thus can't follow the changes in sun light hours to know when to "wake up" and flower. They evolved to respond to temperatures. But orchids did not evolve the same way. Not even the cool growing ones. Cool growing means they generally don't like the heat. That doesn't mean they need cool temps to flower, all it means is the temps cannot get as hot during the day but cooler temps don't "encourage" or "initiate" anything in orchids. How many books claim they do? In fact how many books actually get that one correct? From what I have seen again its 99% of books that all say the same thing, orchids behave like tulips and its comlete and utter rubbish which they are too stubborn to ever consider changing. Yet it is one of the simplest experiments to perform with led lighting these days. Shorter days initiate resting. Back in the olden days people didn't have artificial lighting and thus could not experiment changing the lighting to see what effect that would have. These days we can. And anyone who would, would realize even phalaenopsis follow the yearly light changes to initiate flowering. Care guides are just ridiculously outdated. This video was all good advice to highlight not always to trust the first advice you read but get other opinions to see if people agree or you need to figure out the "right way" first which most often is the case.

[@helloplantlovers]

Thanks for watching!

[@kcbknitter]

Thank you for the video. These have always been on my wish list but I’m just not sure I can here in Northern California. The winter would be fine, but our summers can be dry and warm. Do you bring yours in because of being warm or cold?

[@helloplantlovers]

Neither! We never get freezing temps over winter where I am. We also have hot dry summers but they are somewhere cool, shaded and kept moist so seem to manage. Try one and see!

[@kcbknitter]

@@helloplantlovers so if I get one I get to blame you? 🤣

[@MyTinyBalcony]

Great video as always. My question is not masdevallia related at all. But how on earth do you manage your watering schedule? Especially around the variation of dry vs damp vs, I want all the water but don't drown me!

[@helloplantlovers]

Tricky...and this winter I have killed a few outdoor plants being near ones that needed to be kept moist. Heigh - ho.

[@MyTinyBalcony]

@@helloplantlovers Oh no! I am sorry to hear that. I was considering getting some paint pens and marking the pots. 1 dot for likes it on the drier side, more dots of on the damper side. Red dots for a completely dry winter.

[@newmanmansell760]

Hi Mathew😌🙌🇯🇵from Japan. I think that repotting orchids every year or two means that you're using the wrong growing method. It's better to mount if you have trouble with a rotting medium because the environment is moist enough to do mounting, then the masdevallia wouldn't need disturbing and grow without any setbacks from root disturbance. sphagnum is better used as a moss-ball with the orchid roots spread over it like it's clinging to a rock in nature. To get more clear information I watch Adventuras con orquideas on KZbin, however it's in Spanish he will take you through every imaginable location and altitude in Colombia🥰🙏💞

[@helloplantlovers]

Thanks for watching!

[@kevinhensch9342]

I had bought many masdevallia that smell amazing I got one that smelled like strawberry chewing gum and others that smelled like a bar of soap but more perfumy

[@helloplantlovers]

Oh interesting! Thanks for watching!

[@suemitchell8864]

My masdevallias grow well but I have trouble getting them to rebloom. I am in coastal Victoria and grow them in an inside area with great airflow. Any suggestions?

[@helloplantlovers]

They do need cooler winter temps - is it too warm inside? Are they getting enough light?

[@suemitchell8864]

@@helloplantloversthink it’s cool enough but maybe they need more light. I’ll give that a go. 🤞🤞🤞