Aerangis mystacidii
Description
Aerangis mystacidii is a fairly robust, small epiphytic angraecoid,
with woody stems up to 30 mm long. Leaves spear-shaped, unequally bilobed and
up to 150 mm long. They produce one to several lateral inflorescences,
horizontal or hanging, up to 200 mm long.
Distribution and habitat.
Aerangis mystacidii is found in South Africa, Zimbabwe,
Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia. The plants are found most often in riverine
forest, where they can occur in large numbers
often very low down near to, or overhanging water.
Distribution in South Africa
Typical habitat
Fairly common in subtropical coastal and submontane forests,
from sea level to 800m.
Flowering
Aerangis mystacidii typically flower between February and June. In Durban flower spikes start appearing with
shortening day length in February, followed by
a pendulous inflorescence with white flowers tinged with pink, which
open in May lasting into June. The spur
is long and slender, up to 80mm in length. The flowers are fragrant in the
evening giving off an exotic perfume.
Aerangis mystacidii seedlings, if well cared for and have
vigorous growth, produce their first blooms when they are fairly small.
Cultivation
Aerangis mystacidii is very easy to grow , ideal for a beginner, which does best in low light conditions with very little or no direct sunlight. In extreme cases if the plants receive too much light or direct sunlight their leaves become very reduced and turn orange.
They grow best on mounts where the roots get plenty of
light and air movement and where the long pendulous inflorescences are free to hang.
Aerangis mystacidii can
also be grown on a grown medium of large chunks of bark in pots preferably the clear
plastic pots used for growing Phalaenopsis. I have had great success growing
then on cubes of both teak wood as well as balau wood when grown in pots.
Unfortunately, when it comes to flowering time the pots need to be placed on a stand to allow for the long
pendulous inflorescence to develop fully without damage.
Feeding
Aerangis mystacidii will
grow without feeding but will not flourish. On the other hand given regular
feeding they put on strong lush growth and produce more flower spikes with more
flowers per flower spike.
I feed my plants a regular feeding with a variety of liquid
feeds being, Nitrosol, Seagro, Marinure Seaweed fertiliser which I feed at one quarter
of the recommended dose rate, as well as black tea and rooibos tea.
Hardiness
Aerangis mystacidii are
very hardy plants that are very difficult to kill by poor cultural practices.
For instance sometime between March 2021 and June 2021 I accidently watered my
plants with rainwater contaminated with a herbicide that must have leached in
minute amounts from the micropores in a plastic bucket I was storing it in.
By the time I saw the signs of herbicide poisoning on fast growing Begonia dregei and established the source of the poisoning most of my orchids had been contaminated. Slowly the affects of the herbicide poisoning became evident in particular the roots began to die and new roots were badly deformed.
Photo of root damage taken on 04 May 2022 plant one
Later flowering was affected, the plants producing deformed flowers
that were dropped before opening. Slowly but surely most of my plants have
begun to recover producing the first undeformed roots and un-deformed flower
spikes.
Lesson learned
The lesson I learned from this is that the growth of orchids are affected by very low dose rates of herbicides therefore also clearly very low dose rates of nutrients must also have an effect on the growth of orchid plants.
