Fun With Paphs

[dustywoman]

....or Guess The Species!!

Seriously, I bought this NOID Paph at a private sale last Summer. It did not have a tag, but it was so very healthy and the price was right.

About two weeks ago it surprised me by putting up a spike. I'm pretty certain that this will be a species Paph, as the people I bought it from did not grow anything except species orchids. (Their greenhouse was to die for!) :drool:
Their culture for Paphs was different than what I am used to. They used clay pots, a charcoal/perlite medium and would often cover the medium with moss. As their plants were so healthy, I did not change anything.

I thought it might be fun to identify the species. It looks like it will have two blooms, but it is perhaps too early to tell yet. Maybe some people will be able to tell by looking at the leaves and the spike. In any event, here it is:

I'll add photos as the spike progresses and the blooms open.

Thanks for looking!!!

 

[Per]

Without a leaf span measure, it is hard to guess, but out of the blue, I will go with lowii. My lowii looked exactly like that when it bloomed the first time, but then again many multiflorals do. Nevertheless, I will leave it at lowii as my tentative guess (or maybe a haynaldianum, though I do not have one of these yet, so my experience is limited to photos).

 

[dustywoman]

Thanks Per!

I would love to have a haynaldianum. I hope that's what it turns out to be. Then again, a lowii would not be shabby either.

Leaf span (unstretched) is 11 inches. The longest leaf is 8.5 in.

 

[likespaphs]

that ain't no parishii, is it?
the leaves almost look rounded as do the parishii's i've seen...

 

[Jon in SW Ohio]

I'd guess something with lowii, probably a hybrid.

Jon

 

[Heather]

The buds don't look like parishii to me.
I think pardolopetalum groups is a good guess though. Some haynaldianum can be pretty compact, and that might account for the green inflorescence? I imagine lowiis would be darker.

Fun game, I look forward to seeing what happens!

 

[dustywoman]

that ain't no parishii, is it?
the leaves almost look rounded as do the parishii's i've seen...

It's entirely possible that it could be a parishii. I bought quite a few Paphs at that sale and one of them was a beautiful dianthum (hope I'm spelling that correctly) with 6 growths. I know that taxonomists will debate whether dianthum is a separate species from parishii or vice versa, but I would not care which one I'd get. Both are beautiful. And, yes, they did grow duplicates of their species.

It would be wonderful if it is a parishii!!!!!

 

[Eric Muehlbauer]

looks like lowii to me...definitely not parishii...leaves are too vertically oriented for haynaldianum...Eric

 

[smartie2000]

my haynaldianum seedling has very vertical leaves.....
I was going to say lowii too

 

[kmarch]

I bet lowii.

 

[likespaphs]

...one of them was a beautiful dianthum (hope I'm spelling that correctly) {yup!} with 6 growths. I know that taxonomists will debate whether dianthum is a separate species from parishii or vice versa...

six growths? you don't need all six, do ya?
i can be there in at least two hours....

i've never understood why people think dianthum is a variety of parishii. they don't look a thing alike, to me. plus, the petals are so different....

 

[dustywoman]

I know this is silly, but could it also possibly be philippinense, or laevigatum, or roebelenii?? Something from that group? The sellers also had multiples of those.

Guess we have to wait until it opens.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Heather]

Buds don't look..um, stripey? enough for phil.
I have one getting up there so I can post a comparison in a few days maybe.

Still think it's lowii or haynaldianum, or Toni Semple maybe?

 

[dustywoman]

Thanks Heather,

To me, at this point, I'm looking at the leaves: the stance and the coloration. Also the thickness. The leaves on this plant are quite thick.

I would like a haynaldianum! I have enough lowiis. Not that I would complain in this guessing game. These folks were purists in the true sense of the word. No hybrids. Not that I would not mind having a Toni Semple.

Whatever it is, will be a species. Which will hopefully make it easy to identify.

 

[Eric Muehlbauer]

Its very simple...if there is a spike, its not philipinense, roth, or any of those others. If it can bloom, it must be lowii or haynaldianum................Eric

 

[SlipperFan]

Its very simple...if there is a spike, its not philipinense, roth, or any of those others. If it can bloom, it must be lowii or haynaldianum................Eric

:rollhappy: