Family Orchidaceae > Epidendroideae > Epidendreae > Pleurothalidinae
Distribution: Andean America and cordillera in Central America: Southern Mexico, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru
Closest relatives: Masdevallia , Pleurothallis and Stelis - which can all be confused with Dracula
General cultivation techniques
Most Dracula species will grow a flower shoot through the bottom of the medium like Gongora, plant them in a mesh or wooden basket and hang them up to free the bottom. The medium is a fine-grade orchid mix which can be made up of chips of bark/cocos-fibre/tree fern fibre/chopped Sphagnum - or buy a general-purpose orchid medium and remove the larger chunks of bark. Place or hang them in a spot where they're undisturbed from people moving around: the flower shoot is stiff/brittle and will brake off if it's forced. Growers often wrap the roots in live Sphagnum and then plant this in bark in a basket. Others report that Sphagnum increases the chance of Botrytis mould in setups which are too low in air movement. Species such as Dracula lotax have a flower shoot which rises upward, they can be planted in a normal pot.
The thin leaves of these species are the best indicator towards cultivation recommendations: no direct sunlight and high humidity combined with low temperatures to mimic the conditions in their natural habitat. Dracula species are typically grown in the cool or cold orchid house. Many growers prefer to keep it small scale and create a micro-climate in the basement by setting up a terrarium. The basement typically acts like a buffer when it comes to temperature.
Dracula occurs in cloud forests, these are habitats which are constantly submerged in a dense fog - needless to say that you can't let the soil dry out, maintain a moist medium. The water they receive in the wild is extremely pure and Dracula is very sensitive on this front. Always use rainwater or de-ionized water, tapwater will as good as always prove to be a bad idea with this genus. Bad water quality normally results in stunted growth or leaves with unattractive brown spots. Then there's the frequency of watering. Stagnant water will be an ideal breeding ground for algae and bacterial growth - a fogger or automatic watering system will greatly increase your chances, especially when working in small closed areas such as a terrarium. Automated watering constantly “dilutes” stagnant water and reduces the risk of losing plants to rot, manual watering should be done on a daily base. Take care to provide a lot of air movement, these orchids love it. Aim for a humidity of more than 70%. If you experience problems with rot which can't be solved with ventilation or better water-quality you can try to lower humidity to 60% or 50%. Take note that the flowers close and the inflorescence droops when the humidity is too low, increasing the humidity will revive them without signs of damage. Also avoid moving your plants from one spot to the other, they easily go into shock when exposed to a sudden drop in humidity.
Temperature should be in the range of 15-23°C during day and 10-15°C at night. Always try to ensure a drop in temperature from day to night. This will increase your chances with getting them to flower.
Always protect your Draculas from direct sunlight. They're ideally grown in a shaded greenhouse or under artificial light. An alpine house can be modified with a shade cloth but take care to satisfy their humidity and ventilation requirements.
The requirements for pure water indirectly puts a restriction on fertilisation. Some people prefer to mix a small amount of slow-release pellets in the medium, others apply a 10% diluted orchid fertiliser every month. They seem to like a fertiliser which is high in Nitrogen (the “N” in NPK) but fertilising is completely optional. It's very easy to “over-fertilise” them, this is normally indicated by leaftips turning brown.
As a side note, some species can take a higher temperature. Dracula cordobae, Dracula lotax, Dracula mopsus, Dracula astuta and Dracula inaequalis are examples of species that can grow at temperatures around 25°C at day and 15°C at night. Try to provide a period of lower temperatures for 3 or 4 months to break this high temperature regime. One has to take notice that without proper air movement the high humidity at these temperatures will induce a strong fungal growth, which can induce rot.
Pests & Diseases
slugs and snails are the most likely cause of damage in this high-humidity plant. Avoid pellets which contain an organic ingredient as this will be a feeding ground for fungi.
aphids are known to spread diseases (mosaic viruses) from one plant to the other. Dracula are prone to yellow mosaic virus, infected plants must be destroyed.
作者: 木人仔 時間: 2013-7-7 06:15 PM
嘩...好大串英文呀,都估到淘寶無咁好死,唔係話想踩淘寶但係D 賣家確實係水份太重,攪到加下淘寶變左流野既集散地,加下淨係想去搵佢做番D 賠償,我須要D 精神損失費.....作者: vandas 時間: 2013-7-8 07:46 AM
淘X網包括了論壇, 請各位別再提其他論壇的名字, 否則他日被管理員停權; 別怪版主沒提示.作者: ob51330 時間: 2013-7-8 09:31 AM
