Orchids | Orchid Flowers: cbr/aos

Showing posts with label cbr/aos. Show all posts

April 16, 2015

Dendrobium limpidum 'Ashley'

Dendrobium limpidum is from New Guinea and belongs to the Pedilonum section of Dendrobium. This group of Dendrobiums have arching or pendant canes and most of them are quite large. This plant is one of the smallest in the group. It is considered by some to be the same plant as Dendrobium dichaeoides and the plants do resemble another orchid genus named Dichaea with their closely set alternating leaves. The canes are about 10 cm in length and produce clusters of rather small flowers that impress more by their bright color and number than by their individual beauty. The flowers are less than 2 cm but come in clusters of around 15 flowers. Like the other flowers in the Pedilonum section the flowers tend to be more or less tubular. In this case the flowers are not only tubular but do not open very far and have a lip that curls up to block most of the open end of the flowers. This can be seen in the close-up photos. One very nice thing about this species is that the older canes continue to produce flowers for several years, though the new canes do not bloom the first year. The older canes eventually lose their leaves but will even then continue to produce flowers. On another note: I took this plant in for judging a few days after I posted this and it received a cultural award (Certificate of Cultural Merit) from the American Orchid Society.

Dendrobium seranicum 'Brendan'

This is my awarded plant of the species. Dendrobium seranicum is from the island of Seram in the Moluccas, loves cool temperatures and high light, has very long lasting flowers on a miniature plant, and is one of the Oxyglossum Dendrobiums. The plant is 8 cm tall and the flowers are 3 cm, usually produced in pairs from the top of the pseudobulbs and between the two or three succulent leaves.

Dendrobium seranicum 'Brendan'

Dendrobium seranicum is a high-altitude species from New Guinea that loves cool temperatures, high light and lots of water and humidity. I grow it mounted on a piece of cork bark. The plant is 8 cm tall and the very long-lasting flowers are 3 cm. It belongs to the section Oxyglossum which includes some of my favorite orchids. They have brightly colored long-lasting flowers, and with a few exceptions are miniatures.

Mount Baker Orchid Society Show

Saturday, March was spent at Skagit Valley Nursery working at the annual Mount Baker Society Orchid Show. Our society is quite small and the show accordingly small, with six displays and about an equal number of vendors. It is usually the only show I in which I put in a display and one of only a very few I attend, so it is especially enjoyable for me. The photos below show some of the displays including that put in by our society, a display which won the American Orchid Society's show trophy.

I put in my showcase, as I do every year, but instead of the mountain scene I've used the past few years, I put in something a little more formal. It included 35-40 plants and I won two American orchid Society awards, a Certificate of Botanical Recognition (CBR/AOS) for Dryadella pusiola 'Erin', awarded with around 200 flowers and a Certificate of Cultural Merit (CCM/AOS) for Effusiella cypripedioides 'Ashlynn' awarded with sixty flowers and buds as Stelis cypripedioides.

Dryadella pusiola 'Erin' CBR-CHM/AOS

Stelis cypripedioides 'Ashlynn' CCM/AOS

Photography is always a challenge at a show. The lighting is variable and sometimes poor, in this case not very strong, the backgrounds tend to be cluttered and in large displays the flowers are often beyond reach. I enjoy the challenge, however, and spent quite a bit of time at it, since this is likely the only show I will be able to attend. These are some of the better pictures I was able to get, the flowers identified wherever possible and divided into different types of orchids.

PHALAENOPSIS

Dtps. Sin-yuan Golden Beauty 'Fairy Tale'