Does anybody grow paphs outdoors-permanently?

I have seen this done at a commercial nursery, under shade cloth, and would like to do the same, maybe with the cooler growing stuff.

Will get some photos if anyone wants to see.

We tend to get too much heat here in the summer. Also I have a ravenous rodent/ feline infestation in this area. Tons of squirrels, racoons, chipmunks, opossum, and stray cats. They tend to tear apart plants that I put out for the summer. My tomatoes barely make it.

i live in ny and the weather is so sporatic here it could be 90 today and 55 tomorow also winters temps go down to negatives in ny we only have 2-3 good months for outdoor growing

I grow paphs outdoors permanently in Texas. They get 50/50 sun in the morning and have overhead light above them the rest of the day. The issue is keeping the humidity up. The problems I have with them are very infrequent. I have heaters that come on if the temp gets too low, which is usually the only problem. However, because Texas gets so hot, the sweltering heat can stop their growth cycle, to which I have yet to discover a better solution than increasing air flow.

I used to grow my slippers outdoors all year round in South Florida but every year during hurricane seasons, it used to be a pain to haul them indoors and yes temps do drop in the 30s and 40s even in south Florida!

Yes, the Northeast is too variable. Even in the warmer months, my plants are too precious to me to put outside. Too easy for something scary to happen. I am planning on putting the other genera outside.

Thanks for the responses, this is what I plan to do with stuff like my P. Insignes

http://home.telkomsa.net/thomasriver/images/orchids/outdoors.jpg

I like your Staghorn ferns. I had one in Florida and it got HUGE and heavy!

Very cool. I love seeing other's growing areas. Some of my favorite shots!

Awesome stags! :clap: Howcum there aren't any Nepenthes or Pleurothallids hanging around them for color? Bottom line = I'm jealous. :shock:

Beautiful growing area! I'm jealous, too. Here in Maine, USA, we went from March to July this year and completely missed the Spring season.

I'm hoping to get a small greenhouse someday. For the time being, I'm going to get one of those portable screen houses. It has canvas on the roof and mesh screening on the sides that you can either zip closed or tie back. I'm thinkng that the screen house would provide enough shade for my Paphs & other orchids, but they can still take advantage of the humidity and the breezes; even if it is only for a few months.

I'm jealous also, that looks great