# Not often seen-Primary Paph



## SlipperKing (Jun 27, 2008)

Who knows this primary hybrid? (Slightly blurred sorry air movement)


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## rdlsreno (Jun 27, 2008)

Paph. Cooksonii (Paph. druryi x rothschildianum).


Ramon


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## John M (Jun 27, 2008)

Paph. Cooksonii?

Edit; Ah Ramon! You beat me by a split second! Great minds think alike! : )


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## Candace (Jun 27, 2008)

Rats, that's what I was going to guess, too!


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## SlipperKing (Jun 27, 2008)

You'll both right. But look at this::::




Why would someone want to grow this cross? I got it two yrs ago and managed this one flower! I have no idea how 
long the guy before me had this plant but it was big then. I counted 14 growths!! and ONE flower:sob:I think I'm going to retrieve my 6" aircone pot and unload this plant next week at the meeting:clap:


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## rdlsreno (Jun 27, 2008)

SlipperKing said:


> You'll both right. But look at this::::
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You can send it to Me!!!!oke::clap:

Ramon


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## labskaus (Jun 27, 2008)

I think I would cut off the spike. That flower distracts from the great display the leaves make.



I guess I know now why this cross remains a rarity. Give it to someone with a lot of space to fill.

Cheers, Carsten


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## SlipperKing (Jun 27, 2008)

labskaus said:


> I think I would cut off the spike. That flower distracts from the great display the leaves make.
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> ...


Carsten,
I like your thinking! cut the spike what a hoot!


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## NYEric (Jun 27, 2008)

:rollhappy: LOL! What a group! Actually the flower is quite nice.


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## Heather (Jun 27, 2008)

Wow...the flower is nice, and a great cross but sometimes nature tells us some hybrids just should not be...


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## Roy (Jun 27, 2008)

The only one I have seen of this cross was a black & white pic in what was The AOS Bulletin. It was described as a hugh flower something like 7 or 8 inches across ( or more, its been a long time) the petals and a color description very similar to this one.


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## Leo Schordje (Jun 27, 2008)

This cross brings to mind a couple thoughts. 

The reluctance to bloom likely is due to 2 causes, one may be the clone of the rothschildianum parent used. "Charles E" offspring are famous for this reluctance. By the same token, if made with 'Rex' or some of the others, there likely would be at least a few from every flask that would gallop ahead and bloom. 

Alternate explaination, this is a seedling that was not at the 'head of the pack' from the flask. Some seedlings never become free blooming no matter what you do. This type of cross will certainly give you many pokey growers and bloomers in every flask. If this plant started life as one of the stragglers, it will likely never become free and easy blooming. 

Most rothschildianum hybrids with Paphiopedilum section Paphs (druryii, villosum, insigne, hirsustissimum, etc.) are similar to your Cooksonii in their reluctance to bloom easily, and large plant size. My Humoresque (hirsustissimum x roth) is better porportioned in terms of flower size to plant size, but still a reluctant bloomer. Proper choice of the right parent might make a good, free blooming hybrid with the good color traits from the druryii - say cross St. Swithin or praestans to pick up the yellow and chocolate stripes, St Swithin is a good parent for free blooming offspring. A different line I am curious about would be (henryanum x roth) or (helenae x roth) Compact plants & big flowers? or Big Plants and Dinky flowers? Second more likely than the first. 

A final thought, do you really want to stick an un-suspecting beginner with a difficult plant? When you dump it at your orchid society meeting - dump it on someone who knows what they are doing and accepts the challenge. Dumping problem plants on beginners without warning them is a sure way to sour new members on the whole concept of joining a society. (Rick, I suspect you were joking, and you would fairly warn newbies away from this plant) I only mention this because I have had to try to soothe the irritated feelings some of our new members have had due to some of our members dumping problem plants. We have lost members due to this practice.


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## Mrs. Paph (Jun 27, 2008)

True, you should dump it on someone that knows it's a 'long-term' project, even as Paphs go. But hey, unless you really don't have the space, why back away from the challenge?  It just makes things more interesting! And the bloom is rather pretty and what you'd expect from the two parents


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## John M (Jun 27, 2008)

Hey Rick! Wendy has a great big honkin' one of these with 0 flowers! She blooms roth and druryi just fine; but, Cooksonii....no way....no matter what she does to it, it just grows leaves! You're one of the lucky ones!

...And yes, I agree with Leo completely...although, I also suspect that you were joking. Still, some on this forum might get the impression that "dumping" a problem plant on an unsuspecting buyer is a fair way to get rid of a plant and make some cash as well. I've never heard of a Cooksonii that bloomed okay. They all grow big and don't bloom...or, they produce deformed flowers and/or just one flower. It would be a real shame for anyone new to orchids to buy such a plant, all excited about getting multiple stems of multiple flowers in no time....only to get frustrated and disenchanted with orchids and the folks at orchid meetings. Unfortunately, a plant like this needs to be given to someone with some positive experience with Paphs already and who knows it will be a major challenge to bloom it.


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## SlipperFan (Jun 27, 2008)

But hope springs eternal -- maybe next time there will be 10 spikes!


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## John M (Jun 27, 2008)

"But hope springs eternal -- maybe next time there will be 10 spikes!"

Oh Dot, you ARE an optimist! I'll eat my shorts if that happens! [No photo-shopped pics allowed!]


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## Wendy (Jun 27, 2008)

That does it....I'm gonna bloom mine with 10 spikes. I'm close enough to see John eat his shorts in person...and I will take pics to share. :clap:

Kidding aside, I do have a large Cooksonii and after almost three years all it has done is grow gorgeous foliage. I hung it outside in the tree over a month ago and only brought it in when the night temps went close to freezing...hopefully that may initiate something other than leaves. :sob: I'm going to bloom it or kill it trying.:evil:


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## SlipperKing (Jun 29, 2008)

Well guys, I was kidding about unloading my Cooksonii. I'm for sure taking it to the meeting this week to show Mr Gerber what he missed out on! He and His wife have been very good to me over the years. He solid me 2 doz plants a couple yrs back that he was having trouble with, Cooksonii being one, for eleven dollars each. More recently, he passed on 5 parvis hybrids that he didn't want to die for nothing!
I really can't complain


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## SlipperKing (Jun 29, 2008)

Wendy said:


> That does it....I'm gonna bloom mine with 10 spikes. I'm close enough to see John eat his shorts in person...and I will take pics to share. :clap:
> 
> Kidding aside, I do have a large Cooksonii and after almost three years all it has done is grow gorgeous foliage. I hung it outside in the tree over a month ago and only brought it in when the night temps went close to freezing...hopefully that may initiate something other than leaves. :sob: I'm going to bloom it or kill it trying.:evil:


 
Good Luck Wendy! I didn't do anything special. 150ppm of Peter's and the brightest spot in the GH. No dipping temps for me


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## myxodex (Jun 30, 2008)

I really like the flower. Just wandering if anyone has tried nitrogen starvation to get difficult paphs to flower. Don't know if this works for orchids but there are certainly other plants that will not flower unless nitrogen starved. It appears that with some the presence of accessible nitrogen acts as a potent suppressor of sexual reproduction. 
Cheers,
Tim


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## Ron-NY (Jun 30, 2008)

I agree with Leo. Some of these older crosses were made with roths that were reluctant bloomers. I am still trying to get my Cooksonii to bloom.


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## SlipperKing (Jun 30, 2008)

What do you all think about Tim's nitrogen stavation idea? I guess I sorta did that each fall when I switched from balance fertilizer to "super bloom" stuff, which I didn't do this last fall season.


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## paphreek (Jun 30, 2008)

I got my Paph Cooksonii to bloom by accident a few years ago. I purchased it from Paul Phillips of Ratcliffe Orchids when he came to talk at our society. It was a beautiful three growth plant for a reasonable price. I asked Paul what it looked like and he said he didn't know as they had yet to bloom any

Fast forward a few years to a Paph Cooksonii that has even more growths, looks beautiful as a foliage plant and has been subjected to the northern Minn summer, with its temperature range from 95F(35C) down to 40F(4C). When I brought it in for the winter, I had no space for it in my prime Paph area, so I stuck it with some of Julie's Cattleyas in a southeast window of the spare bedroom, left there to struggle through the short, dark days of November, December, and January. Sometime toward the end of February as the sun was coming out longer and increasing in intensity, we had to cram the spare bedroom full of stuff from another closet we were remodeling. The remodeling went slowly and the Cattleyas and Cooksonii got very little water for several weeks because of the junk blocking the way to the shelf. After the mess was cleared, normal watering resumed and not long after, the Paph Cooksonii was in sheath. It bloomed again the following year when given the short, dry rest in the same spot.


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## SlipperKing (Jun 30, 2008)

WOW! That's a nice one Ross


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## SlipperFan (Jun 30, 2008)

Amazing how we learn how to care for these things by accident!


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## Wendy (Jun 30, 2008)

If it doesn't bloom this year I will throw it in a south or west window this fall and let it have short, dull days and very litttle water. I'll try anything.


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## rdlsreno (Jul 1, 2008)

paphreek said:


> I got my Paph Cooksonii to bloom by accident a few years ago. I purchased it from Paul Phillips of Ratcliffe Orchids when he came to talk at our society. It was a beautiful three growth plant for a reasonable price. I asked Paul what it looked like and he said he didn't know as they had yet to bloom any
> 
> Fast forward a few years to a Paph Cooksonii that has even more growths, looks beautiful as a foliage plant and has been subjected to the northern Minn summer, with its temperature range from 95F(35C) down to 40F(4C). When I brought it in for the winter, I had no space for it in my prime Paph area, so I stuck it with some of Julie's Cattleyas in a southeast window of the spare bedroom, left there to struggle through the short, dark days of November, December, and January. Sometime toward the end of February as the sun was coming out longer and increasing in intensity, we had to cram the spare bedroom full of stuff from another closet we were remodeling. The remodeling went slowly and the Cattleyas and Cooksonii got very little water for several weeks because of the junk blocking the way to the shelf. After the mess was cleared, normal watering resumed and not long after, the Paph Cooksonii was in sheath. It bloomed again the following year when given the short, dry rest in the same spot.




:drool::drool::drool: Excellent!!!


Ramon


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## paphioboy (Jul 1, 2008)

That one's DROOLicious.....:drool::drool::drool:


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## SlipperKing (Jul 1, 2008)

I would really like to see Cooksonii back crossed onto a roth. It could be fantastic. I don't have access to breeding history at the moment but I bet there isn't much with Cooksonii due to difficultly blooming. Does anyone know if this cross has been done and what the name of the cross is (if so)?


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## paphreek (Jul 1, 2008)

No progeny have been registered with Paph Cooksonii as a parent.


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