My biOrbAIR terrarium

Hi, I haven't posted in awhile (or very much), but there don't seem to be too many posts about biorbs, so I wanted to share some pics of some of what's currently blooming in mine. I grow at Seattle room temperature (between 60 and 66 in the winter). Last summer I moved my orchids to the basement, but it nevertheless was exposed to temps in the upper 70s for a few weeks on end. The plants looked stressed when the cool weather finally came. I plan on making accommodations this coming summer to keep them nice and cool.

New to orchids, I first set this up in December 2016 and have been very happy with the results so far. I wish I could take credit for how well the plants are doing, but the biorb really does most of the work for me. I just make sure to mist several times per week (I use RO/DI water) and make sure the water level in the reservoir is correct. Other than that, I fertilize a couple of times/month and everyone seems to be doing well so far. The only complaint I have (besides the fact that I'm now an addict ) is that it can be somewhat difficult to get a good photo of the plants from outside of the orb, and getting them from inside is no easy task either. That, and I feel like I'm already at capacity. I currently have 22 different species in there and I definitely feel like it's "full". In the grand scheme of things, I guess those aren't really bad problems to have

First of all, a full orb shot for perspective...



One of my favorite views is from the top down when I'm doing maintenance.



Now on to what's currently in bloom.

First up is Trisetella regia (acquired Feb 11, 2017). These are the first 2 blossoms on this plant (the one on the right opened 1/15 and the left a few days afterward). There are 5 other spikes currently developing (you can see one in the foreground of this shot).



Next up is Restrepia cymbula. I got this plant Feb 1, 2017 and it's been blooming pretty much non-stop since the end of March.





Lepanthes effusa (acquired 6/15/2017) started blooming in November and is really delicately beautiful.



I got this Masdevallia hartmannii April 22, 2017 directly from Ecuagenera at the orchid show in Portland. It just opened this week. I love it!







I got this Lepanthes elgantula x ionoptera April 1, 2017 and it's been blooming like crazy for the past month.



This Lepanthes calodictyon was one of the original 5 that I bought back in December 2016. It blooms pretty much non-stop. It's a beautiful plant that has put on about 8 new leaves since I first got it.



Finally, this is what was sold as Lepanthes jubata. It is particularly hard for me to get a good shot of. Anyone able to confirm the species?



I also have a few others in spike now so hopefully new pics to come soon.

Anyway, if you've made it this far, thanks for looking and I would appreciate any constructive feedback. I really love my biorb air - it has brought me immeasurable joy over the past year.

 

Thanks Carter, I appreciate it! I have not had any mold/fungus issues. There is a (quiet) fan in the hood of the unit that runs 24/7 which I believe helps. It also eliminates any condensation. The pic I posted was taken right after misting, hence the water droplets. The unit also maintains RH at 75%. If it drops below, there is a vaporizer in the hood as well that kicks in to bring it back up to the proper level.

 

Thanks Chuck. We don't usually get much of a night time drop in the summer. The problem is most of us don't have AC in the northwest. I'm thinking of getting a portable unit for the coming summer so I can better regulate the temps. So, if it was upper 70's, or even lower 80's by day and maintained that, or dropped to maybe mid-70's by night, do you think that would have caused the plants some stress? Thanks again!