LOOKING AFTER ONCIDIUM TWINKLES - Care Tips for Beginners!

[@Susan-L193]

The leaf spotting 12:49 and the brown stain on on of the pseudobulbs make me think it's too much watering, or nutrient, but I am not an expert. Thanks for sharing and especially information about your temperatures which a lot of people do not share, when this is highly relevant 😍. Love your work

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Thanks for the tips!

[@WanderingBobAK]

I have not seen your channel before which is odd. I've been wearing out KZbin for a couple of years for info on orchids. Glad I found you! Like the neat, concise info and the history of the plant. Looking forward to more vids. Thanks!

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Welcome aboard!

[@michaelmccarthy4077]

Length of bloom duration varies greatly based on climate. Here in Florida, we're on the lower end, around 3 weeks. The spotting on the leaves I am not inclined to believe is due to temperature but, rather, amount of water and fertilizer are the roots constantly exposed to (i.e. how fast does it dry and how much air do the roots get). My Twinkles used to spot badly when potted. After moving to a mount, the leaves grow clean (or nearly clean). We've no shortage of heat in Florida, so it cannot be heat related if the leaves grow clean on a mount but spot when potted (growing outdoors, same position potted and mounted). Now, not having a Sharry Baby proper, I have two of its progeny. When grown in a pot with either sphagnum or a bark/sphagnum mix, the leaves spot. Because of their size they are not mounted but, after changing them to coconut husk, no more spotting. Coconut husk holds quite a bit of moisture but in a very different way to moss or bark. There is plenty of free air after watering husk because the water is held within the husk pieces. When using moss or bark, the moisture is held on the surface by adhesion, reducing the amount of air within the medium.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Length of bloom bit: yes I know (for once!). The literature says 1 month of blooms, mine last nearly 3. And I've experienced it enough in real-life to realise how much climate affects bloom length. The leaf-spotting is difficult to pinpoint for definite, given our very different climates. My Twinkles have done the exact opposite to yours, in that the spotting only appeared after mounting. Although we're talking 1 plant here, not several. It will be interesting to see what happens to the potted one through summer, as I'm going to leave that one in a pot, but with different media to what it's currently in. Using your theory, it could possibly be that my mounted one has spotted due to the rather heavy, and now fairly compacted moss bed and moss covering I have on it. It makes perfect sense to me that in the wild they would grow in a more airy mixture. I might repot it into something more airy (like coconut husk), or try a looser and smaller amount of moss on the mount. Thanks Michael - always a pleasure!😃

[@michaelmccarthy4077]

@@Grow_Up_Man55 yes, the leaf spotting is difficult to pinpoint, but if you look at Roger's mounted Twinkles, very little to no leaf spotting. If you choose coconut husk (which I highly recommend, marvelous root growth for me, but very different conditions), be sure to add in charcoal pieces to aid in drying in your climate. I'd suggest adding sponge rock (XL perlite) but, evidently, not available in the UK. If you, by chance, have any growstone, you could use that.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

@@michaelmccarthy4077 Brill I'll try that! 😃

[@Plantsfaire]

Beautiful collection of oncidium you have, thank you for sharing your care tips. Cheers!

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

My pleasure!

[@sylviabeichert943]

Excellent information. Thanks

[@rustown1]

YES! I have 2 Twinkles and a Sharry Baby. All too young to flower. I'm just happy I haven't killed them. I can use any information on their care.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Indeed! 😀 I hope you enjoy this little dive into their parentage. 👍

[@slh35661]

Excellent information, thank you. I have one blooming now but as a novice I really don’t know much about it yet. You helped me know what my young plant might like

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Glad it was helpful, Sharon!

[@anamourao2983]

Really enjoyed the video. Thank you for your share.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Glad you enjoyed it Ana. Hope it was useful.😃

[@anamourao2983]

@@Grow_Up_Man55 Yes indeed👍😁

[@lienlienchan]

I have the same problem with the leaves, too. thank you for the information.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

I'm sorry I don't have an absolute answer to it. They just seem to be prone to it whatever you do.🤷‍♂️

[@daisyflower4105]

Very informative. Thank you. I’ll try them in Sydney, Australia.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Thanks Daisy (if that's your name 🤷‍♂️) - I hope they do well for you.😃

[@Marco37102]

Great video! Thanks 👍🥂

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Glad you enjoyed it. 😀

[@rogamildien]

Thank you

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

My pleasure.

[@Orchids365]

Great video 👍🏻🌱.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Thank you! I appreciate any praise - it's not a common occurrence... 😂

[@Orchids365]

@@Grow_Up_Man55 🤣👍🏻

[@chasmithaa1426]

Sooper plants. I like it

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Glad you enjoyed it. 😄

[@vencat15]

Great vid!! I’m getting my Cheiroporum this week and already have sotoanum, I’m going to try to generate twinkles once they both have flowers, wish me luck :)

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Thanks I appreciate it. I was also going to get the other species but it looks very similar to the Oncidium Twinkle Yellow so I don’t think I’ll bother. How will you propagate them?

[@vencat15]

@@Grow_Up_Man55 I've seen various videos about making your own media for orchid seeds, so once I have seed pods I´ll try to follow their instructions. I´ll practice first with some seed pods I crossed pollinated a couple months ago tho, also it helps I have access to media for plants and a way to sterile the flasks for free. Hopefully I will get some seedlings similar to the cinnamon variety which I haven't found anywhere.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

@@vencat15 Sounds like an interesting process. You've more patience than me though! You'll have to wait several years before you get any blooms from them - if that's your goal. I wish you the best of luck. 😃

[@hubertregan4225]

Great video. Love orchid's . can you please tell me where you buy your orchid's on line from. Thank you.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

@@hubertregan4225 Thanks Hubert. I buy from various sources. I've only recently started buying from here: www.orchideenwlodarczyk.de/shop/catalog/index.php ...but that's come to a halt because of Brexit. At home my usual source is Spicesotics from ebay. They're cheaper than most, but then you have to expect the plant might not be quite as well looked after as you'd normally expect. I see it as a risk worth taking - mostly!

[@ThreeRivers2014]

Very helpful!💚

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Thanks Susan I hope it helps some folks somewhere. 🙏😀

[@lotsofdifferentthingstosee7521]

Really good video. :)

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Thanks John I appreciate it. 😁

[@CatNip379]

Spotted leaves are caused by too much heat?

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Possibly. But so many things cause that. I'd rule out mites and thrips first - easiest to eliminate from possible causes. If you're clear then look at the temps and/or sunlight it's getting (assuming you're on point with fertiliser).

[@richardlawton1023]

My Shari baby just got potted in an 8" pot. I bought 6 months ago in a 3.5" pot. This orchid is growing on steroids.. blooms great....just soo big.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Yeah it’s one of my favourites too. I recently divided mine it was so large. I guess it’s popular for a reason.

[@yesmayhem]

Why do the tips yellow sometimes?

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

That isn't an easy one to answer. Very many cultural issues result in yellowing leaves: temperatures, over or under watering, light, nutrient deficiencies, fungal infections and so on. I obviously can't answer for you, as I don't know your conditions, but if it were mine, I would look to the problem that I get most often - i.e. lack of ventilation to the roots. In my environment which is humid and cool, with a distinct lack of sunlight on a regular basis, leaf yellowing tends to come from plants stagnating in pots - so that's where I'd look first and try to make some changes in the media. Of course, your problem may be something else - but I would definitely first look at whatever your most common problem has been over time. Good luck!