Acineta superba is found in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, where it grows epiphytic in trees, in the canopy of wet montane forests at an altitude of 800 to 2500 meters above sea level...
Acineta superba also called as The Superb Acineta, Acineta collosa, Acineta colmani, Acineta fulva, Acineta humboldtii, Acineta humboldtii var. fulva, Acineta humboldtii var. schilleriana, Acineta humboldtii var. straminea, Acineta schilleriana, Acineta superba var. chrysantha, Acineta supurba var fulva, Acineta superba var. straminea, Anguloa superba, Peristeria humboldtii, Peristeria humboldtii var fulva, is a species of the genus Acineta. This species was described by Heinrich Gustav Reichenbach in 1863.
IDENTIFY ACINETA SUPERBA ORCHID PLANT
Acineta superba is found in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, where it grows epiphytic in trees, in the canopy of wet montane forests at an altitude of 800 to 2500 meters above sea level.
It is a large sized, robust, cool to warm growing, caespitose epiphyte with clustered, ovoid to cylindrical, glossy olive green, laterally compressed, finely sulcate, 5 to 13 cm in length and 3-8 cm in width pseudobulbs with a basal sheath and carrying 2 to 4, terminal, thick, glabrous, plicate, oblanceolate, acute, petiolate, 25 to 80 cm long and about 5-15 cm wide leaves.
The Superb Acineta blooms on a basal, stout, pendant, to 70 cm long, 11 to 30 flowered inflorescence enveloped basally by scarious bracts and carries fragrant, heavily waxy, color variable flowers arising on a mature pseudobulb as a new growth appears, and occurring in the late winter and spring. The flowers are waxy, fragrant (spices), open not completely, covered with a small (2 cm) scaly, color pale yellow with red and pink small spots, about 7.5 cm in diameter. Tepals slightly arched forward. The lip is triple, fleshy, its lateral parts are triangular.
ACINETA SUPERBA ORCHID PLANT CARE AND CULTURE
Cultural information should only be used as a guide, and should be to be adapted to suit you. Your physical location; where you grow your plants, how much time you have to devote to their care, and many other factors, will need to be taken into account. Only then can you decide on the cultural methods that best suit you and your plants.
Light:
Acineta superba loves the bright sun without access to direct sunlight, so during the hot afternoon sun on the windows of the southern orientation and the hot evening sun on the western windows, the orchid should be placed behind the curtain (for example on a table near the window) or in the shadow of other plants, otherwise the plant can get a sunburn.
Temperature:
This kind of orchid refers to a moderately cold temperature regime, and it is recommended to keep the orchids under the following conditions throughout the year: Summer temperature is 22-24 ° C at day and 13 ° C at night; Winter temperature at 20-22 ° C in the daytime and 9-12 ° C at night. To successfully grow at home, it is necessary that the night temperature is always at least 4 ° C (ideally 10-12 ° C) lower than the daytime temperature.
Humidity:
In their natural habitat, the humidity of the air throughout the year is at the level of 80-85% (in summer 75%). However, when growing in pots under regular watering conditions, it is possible to grow on a normal window sill with a humidity of 60-70%. Too dry air adversely affects the development of the plant and its growth is inhibited, and the leaves begin to turn yellow and dry.
Substrate, growing media and repotting:
Acineta superba is grow in wooden trellised baskets. One of the main features of the orchids of this species is that the flower stems of the plant often grow down through the substrate, so it must be very well breathable and loose. It is best for these purposes to use a clean bark of coniferous trees of a large fraction. Repot only in cases of severe salination or compaction of the substrate, its critically low or high pH, or if the plant grows very much and the pot becomes too small. The best time for transplant is the period immediately after flowering and until the moment when new sprouts begin to grow their own roots.
Watering:
Watering this kind of orchids directly depends on the overall temperature of the content, the higher it is, the more often and abundant it is necessary to water. Excess water during watering should flow freely out of the pot, as the stagnation of water both inside the pot and in its pan can very quickly lead to decay of the roots and the lower part of the plant. The substrate between the irrigations should dry relatively well, but do not dry completely.
Fertilizer:
During the period of active growth, this type of orchid is fertilized weekly in 1/2 or 1/4 of the fertilizer concentration indicated on the package. In addition to the usual root dressing, it is also recommended to produce a foliar dressing when a very dilute fertilizer sprayed with orchid leaves. It is best to feed the plant, alternating both these methods. To avoid very rapid salinization of the substrate, once every 3-4 months it needs to be washed well. For these purposes, the pot with the orchid should be put in the sink and several times pass through the substrate a jet of warm water. The first signs of salinization of the substrate are the blackening of the tips of the leaves of the orchids. In case of particularly severe damage, the plant should immediately be transplanted into a new substrate.
Rest period:
In winter, Acineta superba undergoes a cool and dry period of rest. Beginning from mid-November, the orchid is placed in the brightest place and kept at a temperature of 20-22 ° C day and about 9-12 ° C at night and do not fertilize. Watering should be coordinated at relatively lower temperatures and produced slightly as the substrate dries out, avoiding long dryings. With the advent of new shoots, the rest period ends: the total temperature of the contents rises and the watering of the orchids resumes in the usual volume. In the domestic culture, because of the hot summer period, the development of the plant is much slower than in nature (sometimes with a complete cessation of growth in June-July), in view of which the flowering of orchids very often occurs immediately after the winter period of rest.
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