Ferns, orchid repotting, and dividing

Weather: Sunny, high of 40oF
Monday. Well, first off today it was back into the fern passage to continue the large repotting/dividing project. We split into two teams, I worked with Andrew Hemme, and David and Mark worked together on a different section. Because the fern passage is narrow its really a matter of getting the biggest plants done before opening at nine. And today Andrew and I only managed to get two plants done, a massiveTasmanian tree fern (Dicksonia antartica) and a large giant maidenhair (Adiantum trapeziforme). The Dicksonia took awhile as we had to take it out of the wooden planter box it was in (with a hatchet...) and significantly reduce the rootball with the aid of an old pruning saw to make it fit into the largest planter bag (21") we had.

I was actually meant to be working with Marie with the orchids today, but will be helping out with the fern passage projects before nine to try and get the large stuff done as soon as possible. So after cleaning up a bit with the ferns I found Marie and went to work with the orchids. The main tasks with the orchids are staging the display, repotting those that come off display and watering. Marie is a wealth of knowledge on the many different species and cultivars of orchids as well orchid pests and diseases, care etc. We started by repotting some Miltonia. After lunch I watered the orchid baskets in one of the orchid houses, and then we continued repotting, this time Laelia.

At two I went back to Tims team and helped divide and repot some Papyrus (Cyperus papyrus) that has been sitting in one of the houses since the waterlily display closed for the season. Dividing and giving the plants some room now will prepare them for the upcoming season, which really isnt so far away now. We potted them up in crates lined with plastic bags, and used a clay soil. Cyperus papyrus is a member of the sedge family Cyperaceae and is best known for being used by the ancient Egyptians to make paper. It has also been used to make rafts and parts of the plant are also edible. Papyrus is a clump forming perennial, with tall triangular stems that are topped by tufts of thinner stems arising from a thick woody rhizome.