Dendrobium tetragonum

Tree spider orchid

An eastern Australian epiphytic orchid with pendulous pseudobulbs that are wiry at the base and swell into a four-angled upper section, carrying spidery green-and-brown flowers. It grows on trees in rainforest and in shady, humid spots beside streams. It does best mounted, in bright shade, with a cooler and somewhat drier winter.

Dendrobium tetragonum — Photo: Walter Hood Fitch (1817-1892) del. et lith. Description by Joseph Dalton Hooker (1817—1911), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

At home, aim for

Day IntermediateTargets in Plantistry

Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry

Humidity Ordinary room humidityBand in Plantistry

Light Dappled lightDLI and PPFD in Plantistry

Expects a seasonal restGrows on trees (epiphyte)

Where it grows wild

Epiphytic on rainforest trees and in shaded, humid gullies beside streams, sometimes on paperbarks such as Melaleuca styphelioides and rarely on rocks. The pseudobulbs hang downward from the branch or trunk.

Mainly coastal and near-coastal lowlands and foothills, with some upland populations. Recorded elevations run from 31 to 1,165 m with a median of 55 m, from only 28 records.

QueenslandNew South Wales

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates

✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it

✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light

✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it

✓ Substrate and airflow

✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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More Dendrobium

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its Public domain licence, unmodified.