Dendrobium lamellatum

This small, warm loving Dendrobium can be found in Myanamr, Thailand, Malaysia, Sumatra, Java, Borneo and the Philippines.  This particular plant was collected from the Baring region of Malaysia.  It has interesting stems which look as though they had been flatttened by a rolling pin.  It also appear to be very free flowering.

Phalaenopsis violacea var. Sumatra and Phalaenopsis bellina (just added Phalaenopsis pallens)

Very nice Phal. violacea var. Sumatra. This is the first time it flower after i bought it a few months ago.  There is some improvement in the shape and color of the flower.

This very round-shaped Phal.bellina is flowering again.  If you are looking for good quality big and round Phal bellinas, the most famous local breeder has got to be Mr. Law Moi Hwa.  Many oversea nurseries and breeders also produce such bellinas and you can get them in local shows and exhibitions but they are not cheap either.  The problem is that those plants were grown in well sheltered nurseries with perfect temperature and water quality control so there is no guarantee that the plant will preduce the same quality flower when grown in our climate. 

Many of our locally bred bellinas are grown in our weather since seedling and if you see a big round form then what you see is what you will get.  So when some hobbyist say that their flowers are not the same as when they bought it from some reputed oversea growers the reason is obvious.

So instead of buying unreliable plants, it is better to spend a bit more and get one good one, or else you end up having half a dozen of $30 plants instead of a single good quality $200 plant. 

So, how much is a reasonable price to pay?  There are bellinas that cost $1000 or more all the way down to $5 a plant.  The price for the plant above is about $200 so if you can get it for less, then you've got a great deal.

This is a Phaleanopsis pallens with excellent color.  The bars are of a deep cinnamon which gives a very sharp contrast with the background of white.  Although the color and marking of this flower is very similar to Phalaenopsis amboinensis 'Common', the lip is very different.  The front portion of the lip is wider and triangular with hairy fringes and a tuff of hair near the front portion of the lip.  Phalaenopsis pallens is supposed to have pale coloration but this one is deep.

Cleisostoma subulatum

A very interesting miniature orchid from Thailand.  it is very free flowering in Singapore and produce many small cute flowers. This plant is growing on a coco-husk pole and requires little attention.

Paphiopedilum bellatulum

This nice bellatlum flowered again.  A fine specimen from Thailand with beautiful dark purple spots.

Bulbophyllum fascinator

This is a very free-flowering orchid and its flower is truely fascinating.  Its natural habitat includes Burma, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam in primary montane forests at elevations of 1000 to 2000 m so it is suppose to be a cool-loving orchid.  However, it does not seem to mind our warm weather here and almost every new pseudobulb produce a flower.

Rodriguezia secunda

This is an orchid that can be found fromThe Leeward and Windward Islands, Trinidad, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, Surinam, Guyana, Fr Guiana to Brazil.  Bought it from Song Orchids a few years back.  It has beautiful bright pinkish red flowers arranged in a neat row down the drooopng flower spike.

It is a warm loving orchid so we've got the perfect weather for it here in Singapore.  Sometimes 3 to 4 flower spikes are produced together in response to some environmental trigger.

The flower has a "tail" which i suppose has a bit of sugary reward for its intended pollinators.  That may explain why ants are attracted to the flowers.

Pure Yellow Oncidiums

I have two pure yellow 'Golden shower-type' Oncidiums.  One of them is from MH nursery while the other is from WL nursery.  The one from MH nursery can truely be considered pure yellow because there are no markings on the flower at all.

The flower above belongs to the plant from WL nursery where some greenish yellow markings can be seen on the petals.  The flower below came from MH nursery.  The plant itself is smaller in size and the flower is pure yellow without any markings.  Both of them are highly sought after for their pure color.