I've seen this species under two names and am not sure which is correct. I purchased it as Mediocalcar versteegii, but have also seen it under the name Mediocalcar uniflorum. In either case it is from New Guinea and is a rambling plant, each new growth coming from the top of the previous growth. It blooms late winter to early spring and the flowers are not long-lasting. I have my plant in a pot, but most of it is not in the pot and doesn't need to be.
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One of my favorite miniature orchids, this plant produces hundreds of flowers in autumn. The individual growths are less than 2 cm, each a fat little stem with three of four propeller-like leaves. They grow from the top of the previous stem, however and ramble all over producing a mat of growths that soon covers a mount or spills over the edges of a pot. The tiny, less than 1 cm, orange and yellow flowers are colored like candy corns and look like a little balloon that has exploded on one end. The species is from Papua New Guinea and prefers cool temperatures and high humidity with good light.
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Mediocalcar decoratum is a tiny plant that rambles, each new growth coming at the top of the last growth. The growths are interesting, too in that the leaves are arranged like a propeller at the top of a tiny cylindrical pseudobulb. The pseudobulbs with their leaves are only 2 cm and the flowers are even smaller, but brightly and unusually colored like little candy corns. The species from New Guinea, prefers cool temperatures, but is an easy orchid to grow. This plant has variegated foliage which adds a nice touch. It is still small and bloomed with only a couple flowers this spring, so I have only this one picture.
Medicolcar versteegii is from the highlands of New Guinea and has the brightly colored flowers and unusual color combinations that are common in the genus. The individual growths, a narrow cylindrical pseudobulb and a narrow lance-shaped leaf, are 9 cm tall and the flowers are only 1 cm, one flower per growth. The plants tends to ramble all over and I've had to tie it together with some mono-filament line. It is a little bit big and sprawling for my limited space, but I'd have trouble making the decision to get ride of it. It is charming.
This little orchid is one of my favorites for its brightly colored, candy-corn-like flowers. The individual growths are only 2cm but grow on top of each other, so the plant tends to ramble. The growths have little cylindrical pseudobulbs with three or four fat little leaves at the top of each like a little propeller. It prefers cool temperatures and good humidity but is easy to grow. It is from New Guinea and belong to a small genus of plants that have similar brightly colored flowers, but plant that are in some cases much larger than this.
I posted another species from this genus recently, Mediocalcar versteegii. Like that species this is from New Guinea and a rambler. Each growth grows on top of the previous growths and the plant, as a result, forms a dense mat of growths. This plant, however, is much small, each growth only 2 cm tall, and thus it is much easier to contain and can even be grown in a pot as mine is, though the roots do not stay in a pot. The growths are little cylindrical pseudobulbs with three or four fat little leaves at the top of each like a little propeller and with flowers look like little candies. The plant was given both a Certificate of Botanical Recognition and a Certificate of Cultural Merit by the American Orchid Society many years ago. It prefers cool temperatures and good humidity but is easy to grow.
The small genus, Mediocalcar, includes around 20 species, all of which are from New Guinea and most of which are high-altitude, cloud-forest plants. The flowers come in unusual and bright color combinations, as is the case here. This species has individual growths of 5-9 cm, an elongated pseudobulb with a single leaf, both equal in length. The growths grow on top of each other, however, and form a rambling tangled mass. The plant shown here is 20 cm tall, but tied up with a piece of monofilament to keep it from going all over. The flowers are 1 cm and often have a drop of water inside, whether from watering or condensation I do not know. The plant flowers for me during the winter and always puts on a good show.
Mediocalcar decoratum is an unusual miniature, mat-forming species from the island of New Guinea. It is cool growing and does well either on a mount or in a pot, but needs room to ramble. The individual growths are about 1 cm, have a thick fleshy stem and a fan of four tiny fleshy leaves at the top. Each new growth begins near the top of the previous growth, forming an ever-lengthening chain. The flowers, .5 cm in size, come from the base of the growths and look like tiny candy-corns.
This very unusual species is from New Guinea. Its rambling growths are about 9-10 cm tall and produce small but brightly colored flowers a little less than 1 cm in size. It is part of genus of about 20 species native to New Guinea and growing at high altitudes in the cloud forests. The name Mediocalcar refers to a spur on the tiny lip which is mostly hidden inside the flower, and versteegii is after the name of a Dutch explorer of the 1800's.
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