John M
Orchid Addict
John
Lienluu has a PEOY Crystelle FCC. I saw a posting of it on another forum. It didn't look like this plant to me. But maybe its a backcross to a PEOY.
Hi Rick. Well....maybe; but IMO, this is not a backcross. To be absolutely sure, I'd want to see more photos. I wonder if Lienluu has accidentally posted this with the name sanderianum; but, he meant to post it as PEOY....or maybe, sandie x PEOY. I think we've all done that at one time or another when posting from memory. Maybe this is his PEOY 'Crystelle'; perhaps a better blooming than the one he posted on the other forum? I don't feel that it's a backcross to a PEOY because I just don't see this as being 3/4 sanderianum....maybe; but, I don't think so. More photos would be nice.
I see the staminode is half way between sandie and roth. The petals hold themselves like a PEOY. They don't exhibit the severe jutting backwards form that is a defining characteristic of sandie. Most notably is that the petals are wavy, like ribbons. Most people would tell you that pure sanderianum has curly petals and these are definitely not curly. However, "curly" isn't even the correct word to describe sandie petals. They are ruffled. By that I mean, each petal has two flat sides, the front and the back. Each petal has two edges, the left and the right. Paph. sanderianum has petals that have one edge that is remarkably straight....and the other is longer, making it ruffle. Look at a sandie petal sometime. One edge just goes straight down from "shoulder" to tip. The other edge is longer; so, in order to account for the extra length, the edge waves back and forth, giving the entire structure a ruffled effect, not a flowing ribbon effect and not a curly or corkscrew effect. I really think that the flowers in this photo are a PEOY. The colour of this clone is outstanding, as a PEOY; but, it could have flatter petals. The best PEOY clones....or at least the ones grown to perfection, have nice flat petals, at least up closest to the flower. Even though this does not have petals with the very best form, it can still be a PEOY that doesn't have great petal flatness; or, it could be a blooming where, for whatever reason, the petals didn't flatten as much as this clone is capable of doing.
I copied the photos and put them into my photoediting program to brighten them. These photos are easily sufficient to determine at least that this is not pure sandie. While I think it's a PEOY, I have an open mind and would listen to any arguments about it being a different hybrid...just not a pure sandie.