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seedjar

Let's positive thinking!
The plants outdoors are still mostly covered in a late dusting of snow, but my highland shelf seems to be enjoying the cool temperatures of the season.

Here's N. eymae, N. sanguinea and N. chaniana x vietchii from their spot next to the window. I really had to contort myself to get the camera in past the vines and hanging lights for most of these.
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Here's another shot of the above - better angle but the light is way off.
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This is the view from my side of the shelf. I guess the pitchers prefer looking out the window to looking at me.
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Several D. gigantea stretching out with the other tall plants.
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N. lowii from Ozzy's April giveaway. These had died back from three to one, but it appears that another one came back from the roots! Perhaps it's a basal, but a resurrection is more positive, right?
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Baby N. sanguinea, N. spectabilis, and N. alata x maxima. I had hoped to also show off the N. ovata that these plants are normally hidden behind, but the pictures were really out of focus.
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Basals on the above N. alata x maxima.
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Most of the highlanders are liking the shelf this time of year, but N. rajah says, "We are not pleased," with regards to its place near the forced-air heater that is sometimes kicking on during really cold nights.
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A view of the window-side of the shelf. In the foreground, baby Cattelya and vanilla orchid cuttings are rooting.
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Daring shot of N. truncata 'Red' and 'Green,' poised only inches above the beasts! As you can see, the nearest lid is somewhat out of focus.
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Hopefully I'll find time for more soon - wish I could've shown off my N. ovata's first pitchers in years, and my little Helis are starting to put on a show.
Enjoy.
~Joe
 
Very nice! It seems REALLY crowded. Do you ever take them out to water?
 
No, they're all in big trays, about an inch deep. I top-water them and let the tray fill to about a half an inch deep, and then let them go for a few weeks. Watering is rather easy in that respect. Most of them are in 10" x 10" net pots, so I can keep them pretty wet and they still get plenty of air circulation. Having square pots that fit together without gaps actually makes watering a little easier, since I can just take a jug and sort of wave it around without really worrying about splashing or wasting water.
It is very crowded. I'm hoping to move some into other rooms of the house soon, but there's a rat in my kitchen that's been chewing on my plants in there so I'm a little weary of leaving tasty, sugary Neps around. I have enough shelf space in terms of square footage... the difficulty is that many of them are getting quite tall. Hopefully they'll flower soon and I can put aside my curiosity for letting them grow wild.
~Joe
 
Maybe you can take cuttings and trade them off?
 
Great growing:)
those net pots work well?
Do you have to water often?
 
Yeah, I'll be doing cuttings in the Spring probably, but Nep cuttings have always been very hit-or-miss for me. And, like I said, I want to see if I can get uppers and flowers from the vines before I cut them back.
Thanks Zero. And yes, net pots work marvelously. I especially like the ones that are a little tapered, like an orchid basket - that way even when you place them right up against each other, there's some airflow around the roots. The plants are the real testament though - the next time I move nursery plants into net pots I'll take some photos. Going from a typical nursery pot to a well-aerated net pot has produced dramatic growth in just about every plant I've transplanted. I had a sickly little N. sanguinea go from 5" to 25" in diameter in just a few leaves after repotting.
~Joe
 
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