Rhynchostylis (Rhy.) orchids are close relatives to Vanda orchids. The main difference between these related genera is flowers – unlike Vanda, Rhynchostulis orchids have one-lobed lips and usually fragrant. Before re-classification, this genus consisted of 13 species from China, Indochina, Indonesia, Indian Subcontinent, Malaysia and the Philippines, but now there are only four recognized species …
When you see beautiful orchids with ovate-flattened, stretched pseudobulbs, bright, and showy (and often fragrant) flowers, born in inflorescences, most likely this is Cambria orchid. It sounds strange, but this is not a real name for these marvelous orchids. In fact, Cambria is a synonym for a bunch of quite different names of the Oncidinae group …
Barkeria orchids are close relatives to Cattleya and Epidendrum (and once these orchids were classified within Epidendrum genus), but they have a unique morphology, ecology, which are the reasons that they are classified within the other distinct genus. Their uniqueness lies within their morphology – they are sympodial but do not possess pseudobulbs. Unlike Cattleya, …
Leptotes orchids are among so-called “famous orchids”. Their fame is not only in their beauty and popularity as decorative plants but also in their gastronomic use. Yes, widely grown species – Leptotes bicolor – is used in Brazil as a Vanilla substitute. Its flowers and seed pods have Vanilla flavor and could be used just like …
Sobralia orchids have large and showy flowers, resembling Cattleya. The only disadvantage of the majority species fo these magnificent orchids is that their flowers are exceptionally short living – each flower lives only for one day, but some Sobralia species, for example, Sobralia caloglossa have flowers lasting for several days. Their beauty is extremely short lasting, because their ephemeral flowers …
Even though Ansellia orchids are gorgeous, beautiful and easy in cultivation, they are not very well known like Phalaenopsis or Cambria orchids. But they certainly deserve to be more widely known, not only in the circle of orchid enthusiasts. Besides that they are exceptionally fair and beautiful, they are also quite interesting. Ansellia is a …
There are some unjustly forgotten orchid species. Such species, which once were quite popular for their beauty and easiness in cultivation, got forgotten just because of the advent of some more popular and trendy orchids, which are everywhere – in an advertisement, cinema, arts and design. However, some of such forgotten orchids were unbelievably popular …
Calanthe orchids – unjustly forgotten and easy to grow house plants Read More »
Phaius orchids have been gaining popularity in recent years and this popularity is perfectly deserved. Phaius orchids (or Nun Cape Orchid, Nun Orchid, Greater Swamp Orchid and Veiled orchid) are highly decorative – their flowers are beautiful and have a fair scent. These great flowers come in large numbers – inflorescences of Phaius orchids can be …
Whereas Pleione Orchid is often called Crocus Orchid, Bletilla Orchid is another easy-growing terrestrial, sometimes called Hyacinth Orchid for its superficial resemblance to these popular vernal plants. Besides the fact that Bletilla orchids are extremely decorative and lovely, they are also fragrant and they are hardy – yes, you hear it right. They can grow …
When we talk about orchids, we usually think about tropical rainforests, rich and exquisite Cattleya flowers, butterfly-like Phalaenopsis, exotic beauty of Masdevalias, but nearly nobody thinks about the plant with a crocus habit and orchid flowers. Pleione are unique orchids – they are terrestrial and occasionally epiphytic and lithophytic plants from Asia. They look almost exactly like crocus, so …
Pleione orchids – easy to grow terrestrial orchids Read More »