Greetings from all of us at Oak Hill Gardens!
Firstly we would like to thank all of you who attended our 15th Annual Chicagoland Orchid Festival this past weekend. The event was an resounding success, as hundreds of hungry (for orchids and free food!) enthusiasts converged at our greenhouses to visit us and the six guest vendors who participated. We appreciate your support and hope that all of you enjoyed yourselves! Liese and I are still recovering from the madness!
This month we have a special deal on "compact-growing  Cattleya alliance clones, such as Slc Elegant Oak 'Water' pictured at right. See the details just below.
As usual, we also have several different orchid varieties in bud and spike right now which are available for immediate shipment, in case you have a craving for some color right away! The link to our homepage below will guide you to them.....
Liese is back again with some timely growing tips, as we transition from summer to fall. Her monthly column can also be found below.
We are back in the swing of fall show season, and will start by participating in the Denver show on October 13-14. Immediately following that we will be at Powerplant/EFG in Deland, FL for their "Orchtoberfest" on October 19-20-21. Let us know if we can bring along some plants for you - and save you the shipping costs. Details for those shows and others can be found at the link below:
Have a good start to Fall!
Best wishes,
Greg, Liese and Hermann
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| Compact Cattleya Special |
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October Special
Do you love brightly-colored Cattleya clones but have  limited growing space? Then we have some possibilities for you - available at great prices for the month of October. The six plants on special are not miniatures, but what we like to call "compact growers." They have medium sized flowers (3-3 1/2 inches across) on a medium sized plant (12-18 inches tall). The plants are all blooming size and in sheath; they should  bloom within 2-6 months. Plus, all of them have the potential to bloom twice-a-year, given sufficient light and proper care. Check out this special at the link below!
The top photo is Otaara Hwa Yuan Bay 'She Shu' AM/AOS
The bottom photo is Cattleychea Siam Jade 'Water'
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| In Spike or Bud Right Now! |
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Need Immediate Gratification?
We always have some cool stuff in bud or spike available  for immediate shipment to you. Check out what is currently ready to pop here at Oak Hill. Click on the link below, then scroll down the page to see all the photos:
Phal Haur Jin Princess 'C #1'
 Phal Sogo David 'Water' |
| Growing Tip of the Month - by Liese |
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 Fall Considerations
It's October - Fall is here! Leaves are falling to the ground (it started here early this year!). Nights are getting cooler. Growing season is winding down. Fall is the time to start cutting back on the feeding of your orchids. As the days grow shorter and the sun becomes less intense, your orchids will consume and require far less food.
Fall and winter is a good time to switch to a blossom booster food such as Peters/Jacks 10-30-20 or Dyna Grow 3-12-6. Cut back on the nitrogen (the first number in the formula) and boost the phosphate levels to encourage blooming of your fall/winter and spring blooming orchids.
When the days become shorter and the darker/cloudier days of winter set in, once-a-month feeding is sufficient. If growing in a greenhouse or higher light area, fertilizing every 2-3 weeks will keep your plants grwoing and blooming well. Greenhouse growers may also want to alternate a balanced formula (i.e. 20-20-20) with the blossom booster during the fall and winter months.
Happy Growing,
Liese |
