Scaphosepalum gibberosum

This plant has some of the oddest flowers of any orchid.  Even the names are an attempt to describe some of the peculiarities of this plant and its relatives.  Scaphosepalum means "fused sepals" and gibberosum refers to the hump-like swellings on the flower stem.

The plant is 20 cm tall, but the flower spikes continue to grow, producing a succession of flowers at widely-spaced intervals and growing as long as 50 cm.  The flowers are about 5 cm and can only be described with a picture they are so odd.

The plant is from Colombia and from high altitudes in the Andes, requiring cool temperatures and high humidity.  My plant grows in a net pot in live sphagnum moss and is in bloom nearly the year around.  It requires some space, however, because of the long flower spikes.