Question
I am looking for watering guide lines for brassidium gilded urchin which I believe is a cross. The flowers on the spike were opening in sequence and then a couple near the top died but the top one is still in a green shell. I did cross one of the flowers with a melatinopsis (hope spelling is correct) and I am wondering if the cross has taken some nutrition away from the rest of the spike or if I just did not water it enough. I watered it once this week. Thanks for the help this is a new hobby for a tired middle school teacher.
Dan

Answer
Thank you Dan for your questions. Brassidium Gilded Urchin is a registered primary hybrid (ie cross between two species). Parents of this plant is the species Brassia longissima and the species Oncidium wentworthianum. It is possible to cross these two genera because they are both members of the Oncidium alliance.  Brassidium is referred to as an intergeneric hybrid.  Brassidium is a combination of Brassia and Oncidium. Miltoniopsis is another genus in the oncidium alliance and can be crossed with Brassidium.  The resulting genus is called Miltonidium.  I assumed that the "green shell" you referred to is a seed capsule resulting by placing the pollinia from the Miltoniopsis on the stigma of the Brassidium flower. It does take plant energy to produce and ripen a seed capsule, however, this should not affect the health of a strong healthy plant.

Watering frequency will depend upon the condition of the potting mix.  A potting mix that has degraded is more soil-like and does not promote plant health.  This degraded potting mix tends to remain wet or damp at the root zone and can lead to root rot affecting the health of the plant.  It also restricts the flow of air to the roots. Repotting every year or two in a fir-bark based orchid potting mix is recommended to retain plant health.  This should be done at the time of new growth initiation. A fresh orchid potting mix needs only be thoroughly watered once per week.  A good sign of plant health is to check to see that the newest pseudobulbs are as large or larger than the older pseudobulbs.  If not, repotting at new growth should be considered. Until repotting is attempted, cut back on watering to reduce root rot. Check deep into the potting mix by inserting a finger there.  If it feels moist, hold off on watering.