Dracontia pachyglossa

Dracontia pachyglossa, also known as Pleurothallis paphyglossa, is a species from Mexico, Guatemala and Costa Rica.  My plant is 15cm tall with flower spikes equally long that come from the base of the leaf and bloom successively with four to five 2 cm flowers.  The plant is temperature tolerant and like most Pleurothallids prefers good humidity and air movement.

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Maxillaria tenuifolia

Know as the coconut orchid for its scent - it smells exactly like fresh coconut - Maxillaria tenuifolia is from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica.  It is easy to grow and a common orchid in collections, often growing into very large clumps with hundreds of flowers.

Because it grows into a large specimen plant so quickly it is an orchid I no longer grow.  The plant itself, however, is very reasonably sized, with 3-4 cm flat pseudobulbs and a single narrow, 20-25 cm leaf at the top of the pseudobulb.  The 4-5 cm flowers arise from the base of the pseudobulbs.

The genus name, Maxillaria, refers to the jaw-like base of the lip in this species and other larger-flowered species in the genus.  The species name, tenuifolia, refers to the narrow, grass-like foliage of the plant.  It is an attractive plant with large and beautiful flowers.

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