Phragmipedium Cardinale 'Birchwood' AM/AOS

Phragmipedium Cardinale 'Birchwood' is an awarded clone of an older Phragmipedium hybrid.  It is a hybrid of Phragmipedium schlimii and Phragmipedium Sedenii.  The plant actually belongs to my son who won it at the last orchid society Christmas dinner.  It was in bloom at that time, but not doing very well, with a lot of dead leaves and black leaf tips.  We keep it in a saucer of water so that it is soaking wet at all times and grow it on a bathroom windowsill.  It has put up numerous new growths and the black leaf tips have stopped.  It has just started blooming and this is its first flower.

Dendrobium cuthbertsonii (three new plants)

I've posted many pictures of Dendrobiuum cuthbertsonii in the past.  These are photos of three new acquisitions, one a nice clear orange and the other two bicolors (somewhat hard to see on the third photo).  Dendrobium cuthbertsonii is a micro-miniature species from New Guinea with huge (for the size of the plant) and long-lasting flowers (six months or more).  The species is considered to be difficult, but with the right conditions is relatively easy to grow and flower.  It prefers cool temperatures, high light and constant moisture to do well.

 

Dendrobium agathodaemonis (red)

Dendrobium agathodaemonis is very closely related to Dendrobium cuthbertsonii and considered to be the same species by some.  To my, however, they are quite different, the former species having very thin growths and flowers without the dark lip marking that Dendrobium cuthbertsonii has.  This is a plant I grew from a seedling and which has rather small but very clear red flowers.  The plant is only a couple of centimeters tall and the flowers around three centimeters long.  Like its close relative, it is from New Guinea and is cool growing.

Epigeneium nakaharaei

Epigeneium nakaharaei is from Taiwan and is closely related to Dendrobium.  In fact, it was once classified as a Dendrobium.  The growths are 3-4 cm and the flowers 2.5 cm with a glossy brown lip.  It quickly forms a large clump and scrambles all over and for that reason is best grown on a mount.  It blooms in the autumn.

Dendrobium laevifolium (peach)

Dendrobium laevifolium belong to section Oxyglossum of the genus but is a warm-growing species, one of the few in that section.  It ordinarily has bright pink flowers, but this clone is unusual in that the flowers are a pale peach color and are smaller than other plants of the species, 2cm long.  The plant is also smaller, only 4.5cm.  The species is from New Guinea, the Solomon Island, Bougainville and other South Pacific Islands.

Paphiopedilum sukhakulii

Paphiopedilum sukhakulii is from Thailand and is named after a Thai orchid collector.  It has always been one of my favorite Paphiopedilum species and this seedling, purchased a number of years ago, finally bloomed.  It is a small species, has beautifully mottled foliage and ordinarily carries only one flower, but this bloomed with two.  The flowers are 9cm tall and 13cm from tip to tip, not extraordinarily large for the species.

 

Ophidion cunabulum

Also known as Cryptophoranthus cunabulus, this miniature species is from Colombia and is related to Masdevallia and Pleurothallis.  It has a pendant habit and is best grown on a mount.  It is supposed to be temperature tolerant, though I grow it cool, and it flowers successively and is seldom out of flower.  The growths are 6-8cm long and the flowers small at 1.3 cm.