# Phragmipedium klotzschianum



## mrhappyrotter (Nov 9, 2014)

The first word that comes to mind when I think of this species is ADORABLE. It had been sitting on my wish list for quite some time, and this year, I finally acquired a couple of them. 

I can't give a ton of first hand advice on growing them, other than I feed them much less than I feed my other phrags, which is already less than I feed other genera. I also keep them closer to the bulbs to provide higher light. These like/need to stay wet (and thus warm), though I already grow most of my phrags that way. Tom (Fox Valley) was telling me that these would sometimes turn up in the tropical aquarium plant trade, and even in nature, they are often found submerged in water for part of the year. So, that should be a clue at how much water they like.

These phrags are small. Were my hand made of a suitable substrate and constantly bathed in water, a whole colony could grow on it. They grow a little on the slow side, and the root systems don't appear to be quite as massive as other species. The leaves are very stiff, reminiscent of Neofinetia, perhaps. This first bloom will probably only have 1 or 2 flowers. The slightly nodding flower is proportionally large compared to the size of the foliage. The sepals and lateral petals are pink/purple tinted, with purple veining. The lip is quite uniquely shaped.

In summary, this is a pretty amazing, miniature phrag. If you like small growers, this species and its hybrids should be in your collection.


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## NYEric (Nov 9, 2014)

Cute, thanks for sharing.


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## MaryPientka (Nov 9, 2014)

It is adorable!


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## Felix (Nov 9, 2014)

Oh, that's really adorable. I really like the pouch!
And I think it's very nice that the plant is so small- thinking of huge longifolium or lindleyanum, this is quite an advance, I think. 
And know I'm thinking about how to get such a nice little plant in Germany...


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## John M (Nov 9, 2014)

Oh, I really like that! I've never seen them for sale here. : (


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## Rick (Nov 9, 2014)

Me Like:wink:


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## 17andgrowing (Nov 9, 2014)

That is nice.


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## Migrant13 (Nov 9, 2014)

Excellent! Pretty cool that you got it to flower. I bought one this year about the same size as yours so hopeful it might bloom this coming year.


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## phrag guy (Nov 9, 2014)

very nice to see


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## tomkalina (Nov 9, 2014)

It's a great, miniature species. It was originally found stream-side in Venezuela completely submerged during the rainy season, and collected for the aquarium trade as it was assumed to be an aquatic plant. Obviously, it did not survive long as an aquatic plant planted in aquarium gravel! The species has never realized it's full potential as a parent in hybridizing, although the hybrid Phrag. Amazon Pixie (x fischeri) IMHO may have good potential, and Will Chantry (x besseae) is a favorite of those with limited growing space.


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## SlipperFan (Nov 9, 2014)

It's a sweetie. I'd like to see it crossed with Phrag. caricinum.


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## Linus_Cello (Nov 10, 2014)

tomkalina said:


> It's a great, miniature species. It was originally found stream-side in Venezuela completely submerged during the rainy season, and collected for the aquarium trade as it was assumed to be an aquatic plant. Obviously, it did not survive long as an aquatic plant planted in aquarium gravel! The species has never realized it's full potential as a parent in hybridizing, although the hybrid Phrag. Amazon Pixie (x fischeri) IMHO may have good potential, and Will Chantry (x besseae) is a favorite of those with limited growing space.



An emergent aquatic phrag? I'll have to remember this plant for my future Poison Dart Frog terrarium (when I have more time, money, and can raise fruit flies).


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## Lmpgs (Nov 10, 2014)

Nice!! Thanks for sharing!


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## tomkalina (Nov 10, 2014)

......and I think (klotzscheanum x humboldtii) may produce really nice small growing long-petalled, colorful hybrids for those with limited growing space.


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## SlipperFan (Nov 10, 2014)

Are you making that cross, Tom?


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## tomkalina (Nov 10, 2014)

Hi Dot,

Yes, I've saved some pollen from our humboldtii 'Mahogany Run' clone and will use it to pollinate the klotzscheanum, then use the klotz pollen on a fischeri or andreetae.


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## MaryPientka (Nov 11, 2014)

interesting crosses . . .


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## Silvan (Nov 12, 2014)

very cute little thing. We don't see that species very often. Thanks for sharing


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## Drorchid (Nov 14, 2014)

tomkalina said:


> ......and I think (klotzscheanum x humboldtii) may produce really nice small growing long-petalled, colorful hybrids for those with limited growing space.



That is indeed a nice hybrid! It is called Phrag. Alien Syndrome:









We already bloomed the next generation, which is Phrag. Nights in White Satin (Alien Syndrome x wallisii); It still shows the heavy klotscheanum influence:
http://www.slippertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=29265

Robert


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## tomkalina (Nov 14, 2014)

Hi Robert,

Very nice, but I'm surprised your Alien Syndrome didn't inherit any of the humboldtii 'briar pipe' pouch color! Did you back-cross Alien Syndrome with humboldtii? Seem like crossing Alien Syndrome with wallisii would further wash out the color.......


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## Drorchid (Nov 14, 2014)

tomkalina said:


> Hi Robert,
> 
> Very nice, but I'm surprised your Alien Syndrome didn't inherit any of the humboldtii 'briar pipe' pouch color! Did you back-cross Alien Syndrome with humboldtii? Seem like crossing Alien Syndrome with wallisii would further wash out the color.......



Actually Jason is the one that made the cross with wallisii, and yes the flowers are lighter in color. Actually I like how they turned out! There are almost some "Pink" tones in the flowers. But yes, I agree, backcrossing Alien Syndrome to humboldtii aka popowii would darken the flowers! And, no, whe haven't made that cross yet...

Robert


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## Clark (Nov 15, 2014)

Thanks for the lesson.
If I seen this plant w/o flower, would never believe it was Phrag.
Looks a little frankensteinish.


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## mrhappyrotter (Nov 15, 2014)

I'd definitely go for the klotz x popowii. Small growing, dark flowers, long petals? Sign me up.


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## mrhappyrotter (Dec 11, 2014)

For the sake of posterity, I thought I'd post again with a bit of an update.

Since this is my first Phrag. klotzschianum, and the first time I have a plant in bloom, I can't confirm that this is typical, but I wanted to point out that this flower is still open after a month.

Considering that this is a first bloom seedling, that seems like a heck of a lifespan for a Phragmipedium flower, and more along the lines of what I'd normally get from my Phrag. caudatum hybrids.

// I'm probably jinxing it. I halfway expect to walk back to the plant stand to find the flower laying on the floor, simply because I posted this.


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## Carkin (Dec 12, 2014)

Wow, a month! That sweet thing has so much going for it!


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## SlipperFan (Dec 12, 2014)

That is impressive for a Phrag! Did we ask how many flowers to expect on this species?


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## mrhappyrotter (Dec 12, 2014)

SlipperFan said:


> That is impressive for a Phrag! Did we ask how many flowers to expect on this species?



I've read or heard that 2 - 3 flowers per spike is typical. I suppose it depends on the size of the clone as well, the really small ones would tend to have fewer.

This little plant is a tiny, first bloom seedling, and it's pretty clear the flower in the photo is the one and only for this particular spike. I don't know how big it will ultimately get, but I suspect that future growths will be larger than this current one.

I haven't seen any info online regarding the flower longevity, which is why I assumed the lifespan of the flower would be shorter. For most of my phrags, other than the ones with long petals, 2 weeks per flower is about average, 3 weeks isn't unheard of, but a month almost never happens.


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## Erythrone (Dec 12, 2014)

Cutie!


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## SlipperFan (Dec 13, 2014)

mrhappyrotter said:


> I've read or heard that 2 - 3 flowers per spike is typical. I suppose it depends on the size of the clone as well, the really small ones would tend to have fewer.
> 
> This little plant is a tiny, first bloom seedling, and it's pretty clear the flower in the photo is the one and only for this particular spike. I don't know how big it will ultimately get, but I suspect that future growths will be larger than this current one.
> 
> I haven't seen any info online regarding the flower longevity, which is why I assumed the lifespan of the flower would be shorter. For most of my phrags, other than the ones with long petals, 2 weeks per flower is about average, 3 weeks isn't unheard of, but a month almost never happens.



Thanks. Good info.


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## Phrag-Plus (Dec 13, 2014)

Very nice! Your plant is very small!


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## SlipperKing (Dec 18, 2014)

Great color in your clone. Where did you buy your plant, from Tom? I'm also wondering how klotzschianum would do in S/H. Has anyone tried S/H?


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## Linus_Cello (Dec 20, 2014)

tomkalina said:


> It's a great, miniature species. It was originally found stream-side in Venezuela completely submerged during the rainy season, and collected for the aquarium trade as it was assumed to be an aquatic plant. Obviously, it did not survive long as an aquatic plant planted in aquarium gravel! The species has never realized it's full potential as a parent in hybridizing, although the hybrid Phrag. Amazon Pixie (x fischeri) IMHO may have good potential, and Will Chantry (x besseae) is a favorite of those with limited growing space.



As a emergent aquatic phrag, my guess is that this would be a great candidate for s/h.


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## mrhappyrotter (Dec 20, 2014)

SlipperKing said:


> Great color in your clone. Where did you buy your plant, from Tom? I'm also wondering how klotzschianum would do in S/H. Has anyone tried S/H?



I bought a seedling from Tom, but the one I posted in this thread came from Seattle Orchids.

The bloom started looking a bit dull around 2 - 3 days ago, the hood began to droop, and the pouch deflated slightly. Then the flower dropped this morning. It was similar to the way a paph starts to look right before the blooms drop.

I guess time will tell if this was a fluke (longevity + degrading flower quality before dropping). Obviously, a month or more isn't super rare in phrags, but it's uncommon for this type. And, most other phrags' flowers pop off the spike in pristine or near pristine condition, rather than showing signs of aging.

If this is typical of the species, I think it's pretty cool. I've got a few klotz hybrids that could very well bloom this coming year, and it would be wonderful if the flowers on those lasted longer than average as well.

Then again, as I mentioned, it could be a fluke so I'll try not to get my hopes up too much.


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