Paphiopedilum exul

This is one of my most favourite Paphs because it can be easily flowered in Singapore.  Found in Thailand from sea level to a maximum height of 50m.  Only 50m! It is even found growing in full sun! It is also tolerant of many types of medium but generally i use a stony mix with pine bark and some compost thrown in.  I shade them but i think i may be giving too much shade.  Now i am trying to see if they will flower better if given more light.

These plants are growing in front of the window and shaded by the roof.

They are sheltered from rain and direct sun but the area is very bright. The next flower should appear in a couple of weeks and if it turns out to be different from the first then it would be a bonus.

    The pic above shows the top flower.
    The pic below is the developing flower spike in front.

 These are some of the pots that i placed in the open so that they can receive more sunlight.      Hopefully a miracle will happen soon.

Cymbidium dayanum

Bought this plant from Song Orchids last year.  A bit of a mistaken identity cos i was actually looking for Cymbidium aloifolium but this flower is very similar so i mistakenly bought it.  I had intended to tie it to a tree behind the house but till today it is still in its pot.  Anyway, i did not regret making that mistake because this is such a beautiful Cymbidium.  I think the whole plant, leaves and flowers, is so graceful compared to Cym. aloifolium.

The plant is grown in moderate shade in a hanging pot with a pine bark + charcoal mix.

Bulbophyllum lasiochillum

This is an easy orchid to grow in Singapore.  It loves the hot to warm humid climate and will do well either placed in a pot or mounted on a piece of fern bark.

Two main color types exists; the yellow form and the dark purple form.  Interestingly the yellow form is extremely fragrant but i have yet to detect any fragrance from the dark purple form.  But the fruit flies must be able to smell something because both types of blooms are magnets for fruit flies.

When that happens, it becomes very easy to catch those flies; just place a clear plastic bag over the flower.  The flies are so mesmerised by the pheromones secreted that they are oblivious to the approaching plastic bag!

Paphiopedilum concolor var alba

Happy New Year 2015 to all my visitors!!

This flower opened about 2 days ago.  The plant is grown in moderate shade with the typical Brachy mix with lots of stony material.  Concolors are quite easy to grow in singapore but albinos tend to be a bit weaker genetically so lets hope this plant can thrive.

The color is the pale yellow background of the typical concolor.  In my opinion the form is not very good but generally the flower looks pleasant.

Should it be referred to as var. sulphurinum instead of var. alba? since alba means white? You decide.

A couple of days later .....

Paphiopedilum Shireen

Paph. Shireen is finally flowering after a long recovery from weevil attack.  It has also produced a new shoot which i hope will mature quickly and bring the plant back to its former size soon.  This plant is grown in moderate shade and used to be a frequent bloomer.

A few days later ....

Paphiopedilum callosum

Finally, a member of the barbata group flowered.  I bought this Paph at the recent Singapore Garden Festival at Gardens By The Bay from one of the Thai booths at the market place.  I was initially reluctant to buy them because i have no confidence in growing Paphs in the barbata group.  The seller was however very sure that his plants are able to grow in Singapore since he is growing them in similar climate conditions in Bangkok.  The plants were grown in Seramis clay granules with a Compost type potting mix.  Not long after, the roots started to appear and then a flower spike.  I was still not sure whether the bud will suffer bud blast like so many similar plants i had before so i did not really take pictures of the bud as it was developing.  However, to my surprise, the bud developed successfully and is now fully open.

It is not the best color or shape by callosum standard but nonetheless it is the first successful bloom of P.callosum in my collection.

I believe this is a variety called Paphiopedilum callosum var. thailandense.  Found in southern Thailand and is very closely related to the Malaysian species P.barbatum.  It seems to me that the very brightly colored flowers are usually found growing in higher altitudes.  Maybe cooler conditions tend to produce plants with more brightly colored flowers.  But then i may be wrong.

Paphiopedilum godefroyae var. alba 'White'

This plant came from a breeder in Thailand about 2 years ago.  According to him the albino plants of P. godefroyae comes in two forms; the white and the yellow.  This plant is grown in 50% shade in the open and given no fertilizer for a long time.  It gets its nutrients from the pine bark and compost in the potting mixture.

这棵兜兰是两年前从泰囯买进的。有黄白两种。

Together with this plant, i bought another plant labelled as P. leucochilum var. alba.  It is also flowering now with the bud just about to open this morning.

The godefroyae/leucochilum plants are subject of much debate too.  Some consider P. leucochilum as as a variety of godefroyae and label them as P. godefroyae var. leucochilum.  Others consider them separate and classify those with pure white pouches as P. leucochilum.